The Veil
by Angler11235
Summary: Before he ever attends Hogwarts, Harry goes through the Veil of Death. He must adapt in order to survive and thrive in the alien universe he finds himself in.
1. Chapter 1

Early in the morning on his fifth birthday, Harry was awakened from his slumber by a violent crash coming from the hallway. Shooting up from his thin mattress and narrowly avoiding smashing his head against the stairs above him, Harry gingerly pushed the door to his cupboard open as far as the old lock would allow.

From what he could see, the front door had been blasted into the hallway, and it was now laying on the floor just outside the cupboard, smoke rising gently from the surface. He could hear voices, then footsteps moving up the stairs. The small boy slowly pulled the door shut again and wrapped his arms around his knees in the corner of the cupboard. He could hear shouting coming from upstairs, then three brief flashes of familiar green light shone through the cracks of the door.

"He's not here!" a voice shouted from the top of the staircase. Several other footsteps paced through the hallway and into the kitchen.

"There's nobody down here either!" a harsh woman's voice called.

"Imbeciles," a quiet voice hissed from the entryway. "_Homenum Revelio_," the voice whispered, and Harry felt as if a cold breeze had just rushed through him. With a crack, the door to the cupboard flew open and Harry's vision went red.

* * *

The Dark Lord Voldemort triumphantly threw open the door of the death chamber in the Department of Mysteries. A small bundle followed him into the room, wrapped loosely in black cloth, as he walked down the stone steps towards the ominous archway in the center of the room. He dropped the bundle unceremoniously onto the floor next to the arch, eliciting a pained grunt, and turned to the crowd that had followed him into the room.

"My friends," he began, lifting his arms to the mass of robed people, "today is the first day of a new magical world. I know we faced many setbacks, but none can halt progress. With the help of my loyal followers, I have defeated Death itself!" His red eyes flickered around the room. Most of the people present were wearing black robes and bone white masks, though he'd brought some of the more powerful members of the Ministry, so they could bear witness to his majesty. Indeed, even Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, bloodied and barely conscious, was kneeling in the first row with several wands pointed at his head.

"Today," he continued, "is a day that will be remembered for all of history. This is the day that witches and wizards will rise up and take our rightful place above the uncivilized brutes that we've hidden from for so long!" The Death Eaters shouted their approval. "There is just one more thing to take care of," he said, bringing silence to the chamber once more. He turned and flicked his wand at the bundle by his feet, vanishing the cloth and reviving the boy.

"Harry Potter," he said as the small boy groggily wiped his eyes and clambered to his feet, arms wrapped around his thin frame, "savior of the Wizarding World, Boy Who Lived. Do you have any last words?" The boy just gaped at his surroundings, completely bewildered by this turn of events. "Very well." With another flick of his wand, Harry was lifted into the air and moved in front of the archway. "Farewell, Harry Potter," Voldemort said, before launching the boy backward through the Veil.

* * *

Harry's entire world was light. Colors appeared and vanished faster than he could identify them, along with colors that he'd never seen before. He felt a vague sensation of motion, as if he were flying through the air at speeds he'd never moved before. This went on for what could have been years, or perhaps even seconds. Nothing he'd experienced in his short life had come close to preparing him for something like this.

Suddenly, with absolutely no warning, he had a body again, and could feel the wind against his skin. He opened his eyes slowly and smiled as he saw a clear blue sky above him. Underneath him, he could feel… nothing? His eyebrows furrowed, and he turned his head to look at what he was lying on top of. His eyes widened almost comically, and a wordless shout of terror flew from his lips.

He was falling. Somehow, he'd come back a huge distance above the ground, and now he was falling back to earth. He could see rivers snaking through the forest, with their iridescent purple leaves fluttering in the wind. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realized that the leaves were the wrong color, but his conscious mind was far too concerned with his imminent demise for it to really process.

As he continued to fall, things came more into focus. Oddly enough, he could already make out the details of the leaves even though he was still far above them. The purple canopy grew closer and closer, until finally Harry realized the leaves were _massive_. The one he was falling directly towards must have been a hundred feet across at its widest point. Harry curled in on himself as he approached.

* * *

Lissandra gently pushed the handcart along the edge of the forest, pushing one of the metal fenceposts off every twenty yards or so. Cassiud followed her progress, putting the poles upright and syncing them with the rest, slowly constructing a fence along the boundary of their newly-bought tract of land. Eventually she ran out of fenceposts, but she smiled when she realized how close they were to their starting point. One more load and they would be done, and then they could finally get their farm running. She leaned against the cart, smiling as Cassiud eventually caught up with her.

"One more load, then?" he asked with a smile as he approached.

"I hope so. We've only got another hour or two of daylight, and I was hoping we could let the livestock out tonight," she responded.

"We'll get it done, don't worry," he said, taking a sip of water from the bottle she handed him. "And even if we don't, there's no rush. It's not like we've got a deadline for this."

"True enough. You want to take a break? I can get—" she stopped talking as she heard a strange call coming from the forest. "What was that?" she said, getting to her feet and staring into the dark woods. "There it is again."

"I've got no idea," Cassiud responded, "but whatever it is, it sounds wounded." He grabbed his rifle from his back. "I'll go check it out."

"You're a fool if you think I'm not going with you," Lissandra answered with a smile. She tapped the pistol on her hip. "You know I can take care of myself."

He sighed but smiled back at her. "Yeah, I know. Come on, it was this way." The pair picked their way carefully through the unfamiliar forest, following the strange noises. They eventually came upon a small clearing, and carefully peeked through the underbrush.

"What… what is that?" Cassiud whispered, staring incredulously at the strange creature. "I've never seen anything like it."

"I have no idea," Lissandra answered. "I think it's injured though, look at its arm." Indeed, one of the creature's forelimbs was bent at a strange angle, and it was cradling it gently as it continued its strange vocalizations. She made eye contact with Cassiud, and the pair carefully made their way through the bushes and into the clearing. Lissandra cleared her throat as they revealed themselves, drawing the creature's attention to them. It immediately ceased making the odd sounds, though it still held its limb gingerly.

"Hey there," she said slowly, her hands outstretched towards it, "we're not going to hurt you, I promise, we just want to help." It flinched away from her as she approached, and some new sounds emanated from its mouth. It _almost_ sounded like speech, but it was completely unintelligible. There was an undeniable intelligence in its eyes, though. She put her hands on her chest. "I am Lissandra," she said slowly. "Lissandra. That is Cassiud," she continued, now pointing to him. "Lissandra, Cassiud. Who are you?" she asked, gesturing to it.

* * *

Harry did his best to blink the tears from his eyes, trying to focus on the woman in front of him. She was speaking a different language, he was sure, but it seemed her name was Lissandra. She looked very strange, with blue skin and strange looking hair. Then, she gestured and indicated Cassiud, and Harry nearly screamed again. The creature was nearly seven feet tall and had a metallic sheen where he could see its skin. In addition, its face was distinctly avian in appearance, but it had a humanoid figure. These two, Lissandra and Cassiud, were the strangest beings he'd ever seen. She was now pointing at him, a hopeful expression on her face, and Harry numbly realized she wanted his name.

"I'm Harry," he croaked out, his throat raw from his earlier screaming. The blue woman smiled at him, and walked closer, hands still outstretched. She helped him to his feet, her hands cool against his skin. "Where am I?" he asked, hoping she would understand, but his hopes were dashed when she just looked confused. Instead of answering, she continued speaking in another language, voice still calm and low, and calming him down involuntarily. Slowly, the trio made their way through the woods.

* * *

"What is it?" Cassiud asked quietly as Lissandra exited the bedroom they'd put the strange creature in for the time being. The door slid closed automatically behind her with a soft hiss.

"I have no idea, Cass," she responded wearily. "It's almost like a cross between an Asari and a Quarian, oddly enough. I just don't know how he managed to get in the middle of the woods like that, and with nobody else around."

Cassiud stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her. "We'll get it figured out. Tomorrow, I'll head into town and check the extranet for any mention of a species like it. Perhaps they're native to this planet, and he just got separated from his pack or something."

"I don't know," Lissandra answered. "I'm practically certain it's intelligent, if its response to our names was anything to go by. It called itself Harry."

Cassiud tapped the door panels, setting an alarm to tell them if this Harry woke up. Lissandra had managed to set the bone in its arm and had determined that it was a levo-based organism, like herself, and given it a large ration. It balked at the strange food at first but had eventually devoured it after deciding it didn't have much to lose.

"Well, there's not much else we can do today. Come on, let's head to bed," he suggested. Lissandra nodded, leaning her head on his shoulder.

* * *

Harry's eyes slid open slowly the next morning as the orange sunlight slid across his face. He smiled at the warmth and rolled over. He laid that way for a few seconds before he shot up in bed. Why was there sunlight on him? He scanned the room rapidly, and eventually his mind caught up and reminded him of the events of the previous day. It had seemed like a dream, but his arm was still broken and set in a strange, translucent material, and he could still feel it throbbing. The walls were a mix of white and grey metal, and there were glowing displays he didn't have the first idea of how to use.

He began to hyperventilate, panicking at being in a new place that he had no clue how to get out of. He must have been gone from the Dursley's for nearly a day now, and he knew he would be facing the punishment of a lifetime after being gone for so long. Not to mention the fact that he was found by weird creatures he'd never seen before. He threw the thin, strangely warm sheets off himself and moved quickly to the window. He put up his hand to push on the glass, hoping it wasn't secured, and was shocked when his hand moved straight through the window. He could see a faint glow around his wrist where the window should have been, but he couldn't feel it.

His courage growing, Harry pulled himself up to the windowsill and hopped to the reddish earth on the outside. Hopefully, if he went far enough, he would find people that could help him get back to the Dursley's. With a last glance backwards to see if his escape had gone unnoticed, the small boy took off towards the forest as fast as his legs could move him.

* * *

Lissandra was feeding the small number of animals that she and Cassiud had bought when her omnitool began beeping incessantly at her. She glanced down and activated it and was shocked to see a video feed of Harry running past the still incomplete fence and into the forest. She locked the animals in their stalls with a tap of her finger before sprinting towards the area of the fence that Harry had gone through. This colony was rather new, and as such, dangerous wildlife still roamed the forests. In just over a minute she reached the fence, but Harry was already out of sight in the woods.

"Harry!" she called out, hoping he would answer but not expecting it. She moved into the forest as she dialed Cassiud's omnitool.

"Hey, Lissandra, what's—"

"Harry got out," she cut him off. "I don't know how, but he got out of his room without setting the alarm off, and next thing I knew, he was running past the fence."

"Damn it, I'll bet the window was set to just keep the bugs and air out, but not to keep him in," Cassiud cursed. "I'll head back, I'm not even to town yet."

"I'm in the woods, I'll let you know if I find him," Lissandra answered, then cut the connection. She leaped over the larger plants, using her biotics to lower her mass enough to clear them. "Harry!" She skidded to a stop and strained her ears, listening for any hint of motion. She heard a branch snap off to her left and immediately took off in that direction.

A deep growl split the air, causing her to stop once more. Slowly, she drew her pistol from the magnetic lock at her hip and flicked the safety off. Simultaneously, she pulled her biotics to their full strength, for the first time in several years. Her eyes scanned the underbrush carefully, waiting for any sign of movement.

She heard a yell, strange enough that she was almost certain it was Harry, followed by an earthshaking roar and thundering footsteps. Without a thought to her own safety, she barreled through the bushes towards the sounds.

* * *

Harry screamed as the massive creature crashed through the bushes behind him. He had regretted running into the forest almost as soon as he got to them, but he had gone so quickly he'd lost all sense of direction. Now, with the octopedal creature bearing down on him, he wished he'd just stayed with the strange people who'd first found him in the woods. With a cry of pain, Harry tripped over a large root after a sharp right turn and fell to the ground. The monster was close behind, skidding as it followed its prey.

Harry finally got a good look at the thing, now that he was almost certainly going to die. Six of its eight legs were so sharp they looked like spears, piercing deep into the ground with every step. The front two legs looked like a massive pair of pliers, poised to crush anything that got in their way. Two beady eyes glared at him from the sides of a wide mouth lined with sharp teeth. With a final roar, the thing leaped towards Harry, who threw up his good arm in a futile attempt to stave off his death.

With an almighty crash, the creature stopped short, slamming against a faint green barrier that had flashed into existence just as it was about to devour him. The barrier faded quickly, and Harry felt a bone-deep exhaustion hit him like a sledgehammer. He slumped to his elbows as his vision nearly went black, before looking back up as the monster got back to its feet.

With a fierce cry, the blue woman from before _flew_ through the air, her foot wreathed in blue energy as she landed a heavy blow to the animal. She followed that up with several rounds from her pistol, slamming into the creature's carapace and chipping off small pieces. The beast flinched away, then stood back to its full height when it became clear that the bullets couldn't pierce its hide. However, Harry was shocked when Lissandra didn't take a single step backwards. Instead, her hand glowed with the same blue light as before, before she moved as if throwing a baseball towards it. A tiny black bead flew from her hand and came to a stop just above the animal's back.

Harry gaped as the creature was bodily pulled from the ground, its appendages flailing desperately to find purchase and finding none. With another motion of her hand, a blue orb the size of Harry's head smashed into the animal's underbelly, causing it to screech in pain as its flesh began to vanish before Harry's eyes. A few seconds later, the animal dropped back to the floor and beat a hasty retreat on weak legs back into the depths of the forest.

A tap on her wrist caused an orange screen to appear there, which was quickly changed to Cassiud's face. The two traded a few words, before Lissandra made the screen vanish once more as she turned to Harry. He still couldn't understand her soft words, but that didn't matter at the moment. He threw himself into her arms, tears falling from his face.

* * *

Later that night, the trio had a quiet meal seated at a small table in their dwelling. Harry had been practically inseparable from Lissandra after the incident in the woods, though he'd still shied away from Cassiud when he arrived. Realizing that Harry could speak, just not in a language recognized by Council translators, she began speaking to him as much as she could, helping him to try to learn the words for various objects in Thessian.

"I'm telling you, Cass, it wasn't biotics," she said as they ate. Cassiud's meal was distinct from the other two, since he needed dextro-based food. Fortunately, the planet was able to support both, despite being naturally dextro. "It wasn't blue at all, it was green, and it wasn't a mass effect barrier at all. It was as if there was a wall there."

"So, what do you think it was?" the Turian asked. His mate had told him how, somehow, Harry had managed to deflect a head-on blow from a fully grown gaforre, an animal that could tear a hovercar apart in seconds.

"I have no idea. I just know it wasn't biotics," she responded, deep in thought. "Did you find anything in the archives?"

"Not a thing," he answered. "There isn't even another sentient species in the galaxy besides Quarians who have hair, and everything but his skin and hair is completely wrong for them."

"I just don't understand how he could have gotten here without anyone knowing," she mused. "Should we take him to the colonial government?"

"Definitely not," Cassiud answered. "As much respect as I have for the Hierarchy, their response to unknowns is most extreme, and I'm honestly not sure if he would survive that encounter."

"Cass… this could be a blessing in disguise," Lissandra said quietly. "You know I've wanted children for a while now, even if that would have been impossible. Perhaps the Goddess has answered my prayers."

"You want to raise him as our own?" Cassiud asked, surprised. "Lissandra, we don't even know if he still has family somewhere, we can't just keep him here. Not to mention, it'll be impossible to hide that he's not Turian or Asari if an official ever comes by to inspect the farm, and I know they will."

"We can't just send him back into the forest, Cass," she argued, "that would be a death sentence. Why don't we just let him stay here for now and try to teach him Thessian. Once he can talk with us, we can try to figure out what to do."

Cassiud sighed. He knew he would never win this argument with his mate, and if he was honest with himself, he didn't see a better option.

"Okay, okay, he can stay for now," he relented, "but if there's even a chance of bringing him back to his family, we have to take it. For his sake."

* * *

Over the next few months, Lissandra and Cassiud did their best to educate Harry on the world he now found himself in. They were able to have stilted conversations now, and they were both extremely concerned with the few details Harry had let slip about his life until now. They had been just as bewildered as he was when he'd described how he'd arrived in the forest, and they weren't any closer to finding out where he'd come from.

Harry was incredibly shocked when his caretakers had described the galactic nature of the civilization he now inhabited. Initially, he hadn't even believed them, but a copious number of videos displaying various planets and the Citadel had gone a long way towards convincing him. As Cassiud spent the majority of his time planting crops and getting the farm up and running, Harry spent much of his time with Lissandra.

"Why do you and Cassiud move here?" Harry asked her his uniquely accented Thessian one morning while the two of them were pouring feed for the livestock.

"It's, 'why _did_ you and Cassiud move here,'" she corrected gently. "Well, we were both in the military before this. We actually met in a hospital when we were both injured."

"Hospital?" Harry asked, confusion on his face.

"Hospital, it's where you would go if you're very sick or injured," she explained, and Harry nodded. "Cassiud was an admiral, an important man, in the Turian Navy. He was injured in combat against a fleet of pirate vessels and had to go back to the Citadel for treatment." She cut open another bag of feed with her omnitool and passed it to Harry. "A few other Asari soldiers and I were travelling with his fleet on the way to one of the outermost Asari colonies, and I was injured in the same attack. We ended up in adjacent rooms in the hospital during our recoveries, and after a while, we decided to move here to Galatana."

Harry nodded, continuing to distribute the grain. "When will I go home?" he asked quietly. Lissandra sighed.

"Harry," she said gently, pulling the bag from his hands and kneeling in front of him, "do you want to go home?" Harry didn't respond, instead just looking at his shoes. "If you do, I'll do everything I can to get you back." She paused, taking a deep breath. "If you don't, though, you can stay here, with Cass and I."

If the moment hadn't been so serious, she would have laughed at how large his eyes got when she said that. "Do you mean that?" he said, hope creeping into his voice.

"I do," she answered. "I've really enjoyed having you here, and we would both be beyond happy if you wanted to stay here."

Harry launched himself into her arms, tears streaming from his face. Lissandra gently stroked his back as he cried, overjoyed at his response. She'd truly grown to love the child over the past few months, and tears of her own slipped from her eyes. When Cassiud found them nearly fifteen minutes later, they were still locked in their embrace.

* * *

**Author's Note: If anyone who follows Time and Again is reading this, I promise I haven't abandoned it! This is just an idea that got stuck in my head last week and I couldn't get rid of it. Now that summer is here, I'm hoping I'll be able to update both stories at a decent pace. I hope everyone enjoys this teaser, and I appreciate any feedback!**


	2. Chapter 2

It had been nearly two years since Harry first appeared on Galatana. He was fluent in Thessian by now and had mostly grown accustomed to the advanced technology Lissandra and Cassiud introduced him to. Soon after it was decided that he was staying with them, Cassiud had gone to great lengths to ensure that there were no cameras on their property that could connect to the extranet to make sure that, even if they were hacked, Harry wouldn't be exposed.

He'd taken to the history lessons from Cassiud like a fish to water, fascinated with the various tales of first contact between the different species, the countless battles and wars, and especially Cassiud's retellings of his own adventures. He also was captivated by the science lessons from Lissandra, especially when she demonstrated the power of mass effect fields using her biotics. From time to time, she would find him in the fields behind the house, staring intensely at a rock or bale of hay in a fruitless attempt to levitate it.

"Harry," Cassiud said after they'd finished cleaning the dishes after breakfast, "would you mind helping me with something?"

"Sure, Cass," Harry said, using the same nickname that Lissandra often used. The two walked outside and headed towards the back of the property. "What're we doing?" Harry asked the Turian.

"You know the shed out in the back? The one I told you never to go in?" Cassiud answered Harry's question with another.

"Of course," Harry answered, getting nervous. "I haven't ever gone in, you know that, right?" He was telling the truth; he'd been far too afraid to break any of the few rules they'd imposed on him on the off chance they would reconsider letting him stay.

"I know, I know. I just thought that I'd let you see what's inside," he said as they approached the shed. He smiled as Harry started to practically bounce on his feet.

"Is it a giant robot?" Harry asked excitedly. The technology on the farm was incredible, but he'd seen vids that showed technology that was unimaginable. Cassiud laughed.

"No, not quite," he said, tapping his passcode into the door with a talon. The door beeped, and the lock released. With a heave, he slid the door open. A narrow metal staircase extended downwards into a dark void, where only vague shapes could be seen. Cassiud flicked a light switch next to the entryway.

"This here is a custom-made Cision Motors Mark VII corvette," Cassiud explained, pride obvious in his voice. In the small hanger that was hidden beneath the ground, a sleek spacecraft lay in wait. The hull was a glossy black with just a tinge of red visible when the light hit it in a particular way, its sharp angles betraying its Turian origins. Harry was speechless.

"Come on," Cassiud said, gently pushing Harry towards the staircase, "let me show you around." Harry slowly stepped downwards, his eyes wide and taking in every possible detail. From bow to stern, the ship was about twenty-five meters, sweeping from a rather sharp point at the front to the wing-like engine nacelles in the rear. Contrary to most spacecraft, it was incredibly aerodynamic, clearly designed with in-atmosphere flight in mind. _Iris_ was printed in large white letters on each side of the main hull. As the pair reached the bottom of the hanger, a short ramp descended from the bottom, allowing entrance to the interior. Harry glanced back, seeking permission from Cassiud, who just nodded towards the ship. Harry grinned and ran into the ship.

"Greetings, Harry," a disembodied female voice rang out, bringing Harry to an abrupt halt.

"Um, what was that?" Harry asked as Cassiud walked up next to him.

"I've made a few upgrades since I purchased her. Say hello to Iris, the VI that helps me run the ship," Cassiud explained. "A ship this size normally requires a crew of five to ten people, but since I don't use it in combat, all of the secondary functions are handled by her."

"I control the scanners and communications, and operate the defensive systems, in addition to several other, less important systems," Iris said. "I can also control the autopilot if necessary."

"She's got a few other tricks up her sleeves, but those can wait," Cassiud said. "Come on, let's check out the cockpit." Harry climbed up the ladder towards the front of the ship, looking in wonder at the complexity of the controls there. The room was about ten meters long, with the front portion dedicated to controlling the ship and its various systems, while the back was a small living area with a kitchenette and dining area. Cassiud picked him up and placed him on the pilot's seat, letting him see over the dashboard and into the hanger.

"This is incredible!" Harry exclaimed.

"I had the hanger built as soon as we purchased the land, it was ready before we even got to Galatana," Cassiud explained. "Shall we take her for a spin?"

"You mean it?" Harry asked, turning to face him with an ecstatic look on his face.

"Why not? She's been cooped up in here too long, anyways," Cassiud said with a smile. "I need to head to Bostra to pick up some supplies and new crops, anyways."

"We're going to space?" Harry asked, literally jumping up and down now. Bostra was the largest Turian colony in the region and was only a few hours of FTL travel from Galatana. Harry had dreamed of travelling in space since he'd first been told about it, and he was having a hard time believing that day was finally here.

"Scoot over," Cassiud said, nudging Harry to the copilot's seat and sitting down. "Alright, stay quiet for a minute, I need to clear this with the colonial government." He tapped at the console to his left for a few seconds, before a small screen popped into place in front of him.

"Good morning, Galatana Central, this is Cassiud Arterius requesting permission to travel to Bostra," Cassiud said calmly.

"Reason for travel?" the Turian on the other end asked in a bored tone.

"Just picking up some supplies. Cheaper to pick them up myself than have them delivered," Cassiud replied easily.

"When do you expect to return?" the official asked, making some notes.

"Roughly twelve hours from now," Cassiud responded. The other Turian was silent for a minute.

"Alright, Arterius, you're cleared for travel. Please alert us when you've dropped out of FTL on your return trip."

"Of course," Cassiud replied, "thank you." The communication ended, and the screen vanished. "Alright, Harry, ready to go?" Harry nodded enthusiastically. "Iris, please open the hanger and power up the engines."

"Hanger doors opening," her voice responded, "engines warming up… Confirmed, we are flight ready."

"Let's get going," Cassiud said with a smile to Harry, before taking hold of the controls. There was a minute vibration in the hull as the ship slowly lifted off.

"Clear of hanger doors, preflight check complete. All systems in the green, Admiral," Iris said.

"How many times have I said not to call me that?" Cassiud mumbled as the ship began moving forward and tilting up, rapidly accelerating into the upper atmosphere. Harry was glued to the windows, watching as the ground rapidly fell away from them.

"Sorry, Admiral, I'm not allowed to use a different designation unless you're discharged from the military," Iris answered him.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Cassiud said. "You doing alright, Harry?"

"This is so cool!" Harry gushed, alternating between staring at the planet and the void of space in front of them. "Are we in space yet?"

"We will be out of the atmosphere in approximately twelve seconds," Iris answered him.

"Look, Harry, there's the defense platform," Cassiud pointed as they flew past the space station. Harry was nearly speechless by this point.

"We will reach the jump point in approximately forty-five seconds," Iris calmly announced as they continued to pick up speed.

"You ready for this, Harry?" Cassiud asked. "Come on, sit down for a minute. Your first FTL jump can be rather disorienting." Harry climbed into the chair next to him, his eyes alight with wonder and excitement.

"Jumping to FTL in 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… Commencing jump," Iris counted down. When she said one, the stars in the sky blurred, before everything became a smear of light.

"Well, it'll take us about five hours to get to Bostra. Come on, let me show you the rest of the ship," Cassiud said, his chair spinning to allow him to stand.

"Autopilot engaged," Iris chimed from the background.

"So, the ship has two decks, not including the cargo deck we came in through," Cassiud explained. "This deck is just this room, about half the length of the ship, and if we go through here," he opened the door at the back of the ship, "we can see the drive core." A large sphere took up most of the room, surrounded by barrier emitters on the walls. "This is what powers the ship and allows us to travel at FTL," he explained as Harry gaped. Occasionally, a strand of electricity would arc between the core and the shielding with a loud snap. Harry was entranced.

"Now, there is a small lift that goes from deck to deck, but it's mainly used for cargo," Cassiud said, pointing to a section of the floor that was hinged. "Normally, I just use the ladders. Come on, up you go." Harry peeled himself away from the mesmerizing device and climbed to the top deck.

"What's up here?" Harry asked as he stepped from the ladder into a narrow corridor. There were three doors on one side of the hallway, and one heavier door at the aft end.

"All of these side doors are just to living corridors," Cassiud said. "That one is mine," he said, pointing towards the front of the ship. "The middle one is currently unused, but this one right here," he said, tapping the control panel on the side of the nearest door, "is yours."

The door slid open, revealing a small but well-furnished room with a large window wrapping from the wall to the ceiling, currently showing the gorgeous lights of FTL travel. Harry walked into the room, casting his eyes around the room.

"This is amazing," Harry said quietly. "My room?"

"It's all yours," Cassiud said with a smile. "When you're older, maybe I'll let you go on these supply runs by yourself, and you'll need a place to sleep when you do that." Harry turned back to him.

"Thank you," Harry said with a huge grin on his face before stepping forwards and hugging him. Cassiud laughed and put a hand on the small boy's back.

"When we get back to the farm, I've got one more thing to show you," Cassiud said. "Come on, let's see how Iris is getting on."

* * *

The next few hours passed far too quickly for Harry's liking, but he was just as excited to see another planet as he was to go to space. The _Iris_ dropped out of FTL, and Cassiud immediately contacted the port authorities to secure a landing bay. He then contacted the company that was storing the supplies for the farm.

"This is Bostra Storage and Shipping, what can I do for you?" an Asari appeared on the screen.

"Hi, I'm here to pick up a shipment for Arterius. I'm sending you my confirmation codes now," Cassiud answered. "I'm landing at docking bay D-14, can you bring it there?"

"I'm afraid we can only bring shipments as far as the central hub, but there are public hover-carts that you can use. Is that acceptable?" the Asari asked, not even looking at Cassiud.

"That'll be fine, thank you," he answered before hanging up. "Alright, Harry, I'm afraid that you're going to have to—"

"Wait here, I know the drill," Harry said glumly. Whenever visitors had come to the farm, Harry stayed in his room until they'd left. It was annoying, but necessary. Cassiud gave him a sad smile.

"I'm sorry about this, Harry. I promise that someday this won't all be necessary," Cassiud said.

"Entering atmosphere," Iris chimed in. "Arriving at bay D-14 in three minutes."

"Alright, I'm going to lock the hatch between this deck and the cargo bay, just stay up here until I come back," Cassiud said. Harry nodded as Cassiud started climbing down the ladder. "I shouldn't be gone any longer than an hour." Harry waved as he disappeared into the cargo bay and sighed as he heard a hiss as it sealed.

* * *

It took all of ten minutes for Harry to get bored out of his mind. He'd gone to look at the drive core again, pored over the various consoles on the main deck, and even tried to sleep, but his mind was moving far too quickly.

"Iris," he said, "can you connect to the extranet?"

"I can, Harry," she answered, "though I have disconnected all cameras per Admiral Arterius' directions."

"Could you pull up his service record?" he asked. His access to the extranet was somewhat limited at the farm, both due to their distance from any hub and the restrictions they placed on his computer.

"Certainly. One moment." A screen popped up at the terminal he was sitting at. "Admiral Cassiud Arterius' service record," she announced. Harry read the entries with fascination.

_Name: Cassiud Arterius  
Rank: Vice Admiral  
Age: 68 galactic years  
Current Status: Retired (unable to continue in current role due to injuries incurred in combat)  
Summary of Service:  
Enlisted at age fifteen, standard for Turians suitable for service. Quickly tapped for officer's training, Arterius rose through the ranks rapidly, becoming a Commander in five years. Served as XO on the frigate _Verrikan_ in the same fleet as his brother, then-Colonel Desolas Arterius. Took command of the _Verrikan_ when his captain was incapacitated by an explosion on the bridge caused by an overloaded barrier emitter and succeeded in defeating the superior pirate forces. Promoted to captain and given command of a small expeditionary force into the Terminus Systems tasked with clearing out the systems closest to active Mass Relays. Performed duties with distinction for thirty years and eventually promoted to Vice Admiral. Cruiser _Aephus_ assigned as flagship. Fleet was ambushed by a coalition of Terminus forces, and the _Aephus_ was destroyed while covering the retreat of several frigates. Eventually recovered in a life pod by search and rescue teams after Terminus ships forced to retreat with heavy damage to both legs. Sent to Citadel Hospital for recovery._

Harry was about to look up Lissandra's service record but was interrupted by Iris.

"Harry, my security protocols are being overwritten," she said in her calm voice. "Cargo bay doors opening."

"Iris, seal the ship!" Harry said, starting to panic.

"I'm sorry, I cannot do that," she responded.

"Fine, contact Cassiud," he said instead. "Is there any way you can keep them from getting up here?"

"Contacting Admiral Arterius. The bulkhead door is a manual lock, so it cannot be hacked open," Iris said. Cassiud's face appeared on a screen next to Harry's chair.

"Harry? What's going on?" he asked. "I just picked up all the supplies, I'm on my way back now."

"Cassiud, something's going on here. The cargo bay doors got hacked open somehow," Harry rushed out. The view of Cassiud's face began shaking as he began to run.

"Harry, go to the top deck and seal all the doors. I'm on my way," he said. The video feed started to fade. "Harry, can you hear me? Ha—go upsta—" The screen faded to nothing.

"Iris, can you show me what's going on in the cargo bay?" Harry asked, making sure the hatch was still sealed.

"I'm sorry, Harry, all cameras have been disconnected," she answered. Harry groaned in frustration and moved towards the ladder to the top deck. Before he could get there, though, he saw sparks begin to fly from the cargo bay hatch. He scrambled up the ladder as the hatch banged open.

"You sure we got it all?" a deep voice asked. Harry could tell it wasn't a Turian, as it lacked the flanging tone.

"Yep," a Turian responded, "three crates of eezo ready to go."

"Alright, let's see if we can get this baby in the air. Go check the rest of the ship."

"You got it, boss," the Turian said. Harry panicked as he heard heavy footsteps moving to the ladder and scrambled to get under the bed in his room. He watched as a pair of armored feet stepped briefly into the room before moving down the hallway. Harry knew he had to get out of here before the ship took off, so he tiptoed to the door. He could see the Turian entering Cassiud's room, so he quickly moved to the ladder, hoping beyond hope that he could slip by unnoticed.

"Who the hell are you?" the Batarian shouted just as Harry was about to descend to the cargo bay. "Vetus, we've got a stowaway! Get down here!" Harry slid down the ladder and ran towards the doors, but it was too late; the ramp began to rise. Evidently, the Batarian had used the door controls from the cockpit. Eyes wide, Harry slid behind one of the creates they'd loaded, hoping he could stay hidden at least until Cassiud arrived.

"I know you're down here, kid," the Batarian's gravelly voice echoed in the hold. "Come on out, I promise I won't hurt you." His heavy footsteps slowly moved towards Harry's hiding spot. Harry slid around the corner of the crate, hoping to slip behind the man.

"Gotcha!" the Turian exclaimed as he moved around the same corner and grabbed Harry by the arms. "What the hell are you?" Harry kicked at him, but his blows were easily absorbed by the Turian's armor.

"I've never seen anything like it," the Batarian said, looking at Harry carefully. "Think it's just a pet or something?"

"Get off me!" Harry shouted, lifting his feet from the ground and kicking at anything within reach. The only thing he managed to hit was one of the crates.

"Guess not," the Turian replied. "Think it's worth anything?"

"Some of the higher-ups in the Hegemony are always looking for collector's items," the Batarian said thoughtfully. "We'll take him, I'm sure we can find a buyer."

Harry was terrified now. He knew the reputation of the Hegemony, and he knew that they were only tolerated by the rest of the galaxy because nobody wanted to commit genocide. That didn't mean, though, that anyone else approved of their slavery. It was, for the most part, just ignored. Harry let himself go slack, as if the fight had gone out of him. In response, the Turian's grip loosened. Now, he just had to wait for the perfect opportunity.

"I think I've got some cuffs in my bag, I'll go grab them," the Batarian said, moving back to the ladder. "We can just leave him down here for now."

The instant the Batarian was fully up the ladder, Harry made his move. He threw an elbow backwards as hard as he could into the relatively unprotected midriff of the Turian, who grunted and reflexively released him. Not wasting a second, Harry sprinted to the door controls, climbing on top of one of the crates to reach it.

"Oh, no, you don't," the Turian growled, grabbing one of Harry's feet and making him fall. Harry rolled over to face him and saw the Turian drawing a fist backwards.

The magic that had lain dormant inside Harry for nearly two years awakened, recognizing Harry's need for protection. In a split second, his magic assessed the situation and decided on a course of action. A bolt of light shot from one of Harry's hands, striking the Turian in the chest and throwing him backwards. However, at that same moment, his magic interacted with the eezo that was floating in the air around him, emanating from the crate he'd kicked earlier. In a second flash of light, the eezo in the air, along with a significant amount inside the crate, was vaporized by his magic, which then absorbed the strange material.

Harry felt light-headed, as if he were breathing poorly recycled air. The room spun around him, and he couldn't focus enough to stand and activate the door controls. The Turian got to his feet slowly, rubbing his chest with one hand.

"So, you're a biotic, eh?" he asked, annoyance clear in his tone. "That means we can get an even higher price for you." Harry took deep breaths, trying to clear his head enough to try to avoid the bird-like alien who was stalking towards him. "Don't make this harder than it has to be."

Something in Harry's mind had clicked when the Turian mentioned biotics. Harry lifted a shaky hand, directing his palm towards the Turian, a deep green glow gathering around his fingers in wispy arcs. Remembering how Lissandra described a biotic throw to him, Harry thrust his palm forward.

A green orb jumped from his palm and threw the Turian bodily against the wall. With a crack, his head struck the hull, and he slumped to the ground, unconscious. Unsteadily, with a weariness growing in his limbs, Harry pulled himself up and managed to activate the door controls.

"What's going on down there?" the Batarian's voice called out from the ladder. Harry quickly rolled off the crate and stumbled towards the lowering ramp. He fell as it lowered, practically rolling down to the ground.

"Harry!" Cassiud's voice rang out, and suddenly he was there, kneeling over Harry. "Harry, are you alright?"

"Be—behind…" Harry couldn't get his mouth to form the proper word, but he could see the Batarian drawing his pistol behind Cassiud. "NO!" he shouted as the gun lifted towards him. With another burst of energy, Harry launched another throw at the Batarian, throwing him backwards into the cargo hold. With a jolt, Cassiud realized they were not alone, and turned to run towards the Batarian, grabbing the pistol from the ground as he went. He was shocked, though, to see him lying slumped against the back of the hold, a small amount of smoke rising from his breastplate, his eyes unfocused. He bashed the handle of the pistol against his head, knocking him out, then returned to Harry.

"Harry, can you hear me?" he said, gently lifting the small boy into his arms. Harry's eyelids fluttered open as he heard Cassiud's voice.

"Dad?" he said softly, clearly confused. Cassiud decided not to comment on the word.

"Don't worry, Harry, everything is alright. I'm bringing you back into the ship now, okay?" he said softly. Harry just nodded sleepily, turning his head into Cassiud's chest.

* * *

Harry blinked rapidly, confused at the sight above him. There was a soft blue light, moving like waves above him. It took several minutes for him to realize he was in his bed on the _Iris_, and he was seeing the effects of FTL travel. He slowly sat up and put his feet on the cool metal floor, holding his head as it started to spin slightly. When it finally passed, he stood and went to the cockpit.

"Cass?" he said sleepily.

"Hey, Harry," the man said, standing from the pilot's seat and walking towards him. "How're you feeling? You gave me quite the fright back there."

"I'm alright, just really tired," Harry answered, rubbing at his eyes.

"How much do you remember?" he asked in a low voice, kneeling so he was at Harry's eye level.

"I remember running down to the cargo bay, but they caught me—" Harry cut himself off, eyes going wide. "I used biotics?" he asked incredulously.

"It sure looked like it," Cassiud said with a small smile. "But I really need you to tell me everything that happened. I realize now that I shouldn't have disconnected the cameras, I should have just turned off the extranet connections."

"Iris warned me that someone had managed to open the doors. I hid under my bed, but I tried to sneak off the ship because it sounded like they were trying to take off." Harry's brows furrowed now as he sorted through his muddled brain. "I got to the cargo bay, but they caught me, and said they were gonna sell me to the Hegemony."

Cassiud recently calmed fury rose again at this. He knew those pirates were despicable people, trying to hurt a child like that, but selling one into slavery? There were select few things lower than that.

Harry's voice was shaking slightly, now. "The Batarian went back to the cockpit, and I managed to get away from the other guy, and I _almost_ got the door open. He grabbed me again, and I'm not entirely sure what happened, but he got blasted across the room. He came at me again, but then I managed to throw him again, and I think I knocked him out." He took a shuddering breath. "Then you showed up, and I threw the other guy, and then—" he stopped talking suddenly, his eyes going wide. "Cassiud, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to call you that, it just slipped out, please don't—"

"It's alright, Harry," Cassiud said, silencing his apologies. "You've basically been a son to Lissandra and me these past two years, it was bound to happen sooner or later." He smiled at the boy. "I promise I'm not upset with you. I was just worried that you were injured, but I couldn't risk revealing you to the Hierarchy. All the scans came back clear, but I still wasn't sure."

"Promise?" Harry asked softly.

"Promise," Cassiud answered. "Why don't you sit up here with me, we're nearly back."

* * *

Just over an hour later, Harry and Cassiud were back at the farm, letting Lissandra know what happened. As soon as she realized Harry had been in danger, she'd pulled him into a tight embrace for the remainder of the story. She'd managed a slight smile when she learned of Harry's use of biotics, but she didn't let Harry out of her sight for the rest of the evening, or even the next few days. Cassiud told her about his slip of the tongue, and the next day she told him he could call her 'mom' if he wanted to. He just said he'd think about it.

About a week after the incident, Harry finally managed to convince Lissandra to show him how to use biotics. The two went into the field, while Lissandra carried a roughly made scarecrow along behind her. She set it up about twenty feet away, then walked back to him.

"Now, Asari are the most naturally gifted biotics in the galaxy, with somewhere above ninety percent of us able to use biotics without the help of biotic amplifiers. Most biotics from other species need bio-amps to coordinate their nervous system enough to fully control their powers," Lissandra explained. She knew that Harry already knew this, but it was worth repeating. "Times of great stress have been shown to allow even those without amps to perform powerful biotic moves, but for the most part, they're required. So, before we start, you must understand that it's possible that you won't be able to do anything until we can get you some amps. Okay?"

"Got it," Harry said, clearly determined to prove her wrong.

"Alright," she said, a smile forming despite her best efforts. "The easiest way to use biotics is to train yourself to associate a particular movement with a particular effect, like this." She turned to the target and jabbed her fist towards it. A brilliant blue orb flew from her hand and impacted the scarecrow, nearly pulling it from the dirt.

"Make sense?" she asked, the blue glow fading from her body. Harry nodded, brows already furrowed. "Alright, why don't you give it a shot?"

Harry turned to the target and clenched his fist. He jabbed his fist towards it, but nothing happened, not even a spark of light on his hand. His face fell.

"It's alright, Harry, I didn't expect it to happen on the first try. Keep going," she encouraged. Harry nodded and refocused.

He focused as hard as he could, staring at the target. This time, he tried recreating the confrontation with the pirates in his mind, picturing the Batarian pirate in his mind's eye. He focused on his desire to get it away from him and drew his fist back. He wasn't paying attention, but Lissandra's eyes widened as she saw a green glow begin to emanate from his hand, wisps of light popping into and out of existence faster than she could really identify them. With a grunt, Harry shoved his hand forwards, expelling a dark green orb that flew at the scarecrow even faster than her own had. With a heavy thud, the target was ripped from the ground and flew backwards nearly five meters. Both of their jaws dropped.

"Well," Lissandra said, "that was… impressive." Granted, her own throw had been massively underpowered, but that was still a remarkable result.

"Did I really do that?" Harry asked, incredulous. "That was amazing! Tiring, too, but wow! And why was it green? I thought mass effect fields were always blue?"

"To be honest, Harry, I have no idea why it was green," Lissandra asked, truly confused as well. "How are you feeling?"

"It feels like I just ran a mile or two," Harry admitted. "Why is it so exhausting?"

"The energy to do something like this has to come from somewhere. Biotics who use their abilities regularly normally have to eat a lot more, just because of the extra energy they expend," she said. "As you practice, it'll get easier, just like most things, but it'll always take energy." Harry nodded.

"Can you show me some other moves?" he asked. Lissandra smiled.

* * *

Harry leaped into this new training with renewed excitement. Lissandra, who he eventually started to call 'mom,' showed him every biotic move she knew. He took to them like an Asari commando trainee, which was really saying something. The green tinge to his biotics continued to perplex her, but as far as she could tell, there wasn't any detrimental effect, so she did her best to ignore it. Cassiud began teaching him how to fly the _Iris_ once he turned ten, and he never looked back. He never felt as free as he did when he was flying, and within a year he was nearly as skilled as Cassiud.

Cassiud also showed Harry what was behind the heavy door on the top deck of the _Iris_. Harry was confused at first, it was just another ladder, but there wasn't enough room for another deck in the ship. When he climbed up, though, he was shocked to find himself inside a small fighter craft. Amazingly, the tiny ship blended in nearly perfectly with the _Iris_ when it was docked, nestled tightly on the top. Much to Harry's dismay, though, Cassiud insisted that Harry would have to wait until he was older to fly it. Grudgingly, Harry accepted his terms.

At Harry's insistence, they'd both begun teaching him a little bit about combat as well. They knew as well as the next person how dangerous the galaxy could be, and they decided they had to prepare their adopted son as best they could. Lissandra taught him a bit of close combat, while Cassiud trained him in the use and safety of firearms. He dove into these lessons just like all the rest, displaying an uncanny skill, both impressing and worrying his parents.

On Harry's sixteenth birthday, Cassiud again took Harry out to the hanger.

"Well, son," he started, "I think it's finally time for you to take your first solo trip."

"You're kidding me!" Harry said. Harry was tall for his age, rapidly approaching six feet in height. He was now taller than his mother, though Cassiud still towered over him.

"No, Harry," he said with a chuckle, "if I'm being honest, you've been ready for a while, but I figured it would make a good birthday present."

"This is awesome! But… dad, what about the whole, you know, undiscovered species thing?" Harry asked uncertainly.

"I've arranged for some _trustworthy_ associates of mine to deliver the supplies directly to the docking bay, they'll even load the ship once you land. I've convinced them it was just an overabundance of caution, considering some of the encounters I've had there," Cassiud explained as they walked into the hanger.

"Iris," he said as they entered the ship, "make note that Harry is now granted full privileges to the ship."

"Noted," her voiced chimed. Harry couldn't wipe the grin off his face.

"So, just remember to keep the cameras off when you're talking to the officials, and I've uploaded the details of the shipment, so you can get them delivered when you arrive," Cassiud reminded him. "Iris has the voice synthesizer programmed in, you'll sound just like me. And please, don't do too many flips in-atmosphere, alright? Your mother worries about you."

"I won't, dad," Harry said with a smile. "Don't worry, everything will go just fine."

"I know, I know," Cassiud said as he exited the ship. "Send us a message when you're heading back, it should get here at least a little while before you, so we can get dinner ready." With a last wave, the cargo bay doors closed, and Harry climbed into the cockpit.

"Iris, open the hanger, please," he requested as he sat down. He knew that Iris could practically fly the ship to Bostra and back with no problems, but he much preferred to do it himself. With practiced ease, he started warming the engines up and ran through his preflight checklist.

"All systems are green, Harry," Iris said.

"Excellent. Let's get going," Harry said. Five minutes later, he was cleared for travel and rocketing into the upper atmosphere. He jumped into FTL without incident and arrived at Bostra right on schedule and was quickly cleared to land.

"Iris, begin automated docking procedures," Harry said, standing from his seat after sending the request for the supplies to be delivered. He stretched, getting the blood flowing in his legs again after the long flight. "Alert me when they get here, I want to make sure everything is loaded properly." He moved to the kitchen, fixing himself a small lunch. As he ate, he watched the highlights from the most recent biotiball game between the Palaven Knights and the Usaru Maestros. He pulled the video feed of the cargo bay up on his omnitool when Iris told him they arrived and watched as they loaded the farm equipment before leaving. After he was sure they'd left the docking bay, he descended the ladder to double check that everything Cassiud had ordered was there.

He'd just finished comparing the contents of the last crate to the manifest that Cassiud had given him when he heard footsteps behind him. Reflexively, before he realized what he was doing, he turned around, and found himself face to face with an Asari.

* * *

**Author's Note: Now that I finally got this story past the intro chapter, I'm planning on alternating between this and Time and Again. I'm doing my best to stick to official Mass Effect lore, but I may miss something here or there, or intentionally change something to suit my needs. Anyways, I hopy you guys enjoy the new chapter!**

**Edit, 7/31/19: Changed Harry's age to 16 at end of chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

Harry turned around and came face to face with a young Asari—well, young for an Asari. She had a puzzled look on her face as Harry, in the back of the cargo bay, turned to face her. With a feeling of horror, Harry realized that he was face to face with someone, in person. He spun back around, wishing that he could somehow hide, but knowing that it was far too late.

"Excuse me," the Asari spoke, confusion in her voice. "Could I speak to you for a moment?"

"I'm afraid not," Harry answered quickly. "I really have to be going. I'm already behind schedule. Sorry." Harry said this as quickly as possible, continuing to face away from her and acting busy with his omnitool.

"Please, all I need is a ride to Galatana, one of my friends told me your ship was heading that way," she pressed. "I can't afford the public transport, but I need to get there."

"I'm sorry, but I need to you get off my ship," Harry insisted. The Asari sighed heavily.

"Sorry for disturbing you," she said with disappointment. Harry waited until he heard her footsteps move from the metal of the ramp to the concrete of the docking bay, then rushed to the door controls as quickly as he could. He sighed in relief, watching as the reflective metal door lifted into place, showing himself his blue reflection.

That wasn't right. He activated the front-facing camera on his omnitool. Staring back at him was an Asari that looked vaguely like Lissandra. Even as he observed, a ripple ran over his face, revealing his normal, slightly tanned skin.

"What the hell…" he muttered, running his fingers along his jawline. He was absolutely certain that it hadn't been a trick of the light; he'd really looked like an Asari for a moment.

"Iris," he called out, distracted.

"Yes, Harry?" Iris' voice called out.

"Prep the ship for takeoff and clear it with the authorities, we're good to go," he said.

* * *

Harry spent the five hours on the flight back standing in front of the mirror in his room, trying to recreate what he'd seen earlier. A few times, he thought that he might've seen a blue tinge to his skin, but it was brief enough that it could've been his imagination.

"Iris, pull up the security footage from when I was in the cargo bay, please," Harry asked.

"Certainly, Harry. Sending it to your omnitool now," Iris said. "Dropping out of FTL in approximately fifteen minutes."

Harry rapidly skipped to when he was surprised with the Asari, flipping through the cameras until he got a good look at himself. He watched as he turned to the door and saw his head morph into that of an Asari as soon as he realized someone was in the room. His jaw dropped as he watched the clip over and over, the impossibility of it still sinking in.

* * *

It took a while to convince his parents of what he'd seen, even with the video evidence. He was ecstatic, though, because if he could learn to recreate it, he would finally be able to be seen in public. He loved his parents, but he craved conversation with someone his own age. Between his daily chores, he would sit on the back porch with his omnitool out, straining to change his appearance. Just as before, he would occasionally see a flash of blue here or there, but as he continued to practice, he made steady progress. Nearly a month after his close call, he _finally_ managed it. Lissandra nearly screamed when she thought there was a strange Asari in their house (though she would fervently deny that), but both she and Cassiud were blown away by it. This was obviously not a biotic ability, so they decided eventually that it must be a skill unique to his race, even though Harry would continue to deny that it was.

Once they determined that Harry could hold his disguise for long periods of time without too much concentration, Cassiud found a voice modulator in his old military equipment, and Harry finally got to go into the nearest town with his parents. He was introduced as one of Lissandra's children from a previous partner to explain why he hadn't been around until now, an explanation that was readily accepted. Unfortunately for him, there was nobody his age living nearby. As a relatively new colony, Galatana was mainly populated by older people looking to retire and new couples starting a family. Regardless, Harry was thrilled to finally interact with other people, even if he was disconcerted to have feminine pronouns applied to him, considering the species he was mimicking.

Soon after, Harry returned to Bostra for another supply run. Now that he could hide his true nature, his parents were much more willing to let him travel alone, and he was hoping that he could take more of these solo trips. As before, the trip was uneventful, though this time, he went to the storage facility to pick up the provisions instead of having them delivered to his ship. He was forced to wear rather loose clothing, though, to hide the fact that his body did not match his face. He quickly got back to the ship and was in the process of getting everything secured when he was interrupted, again.

"Hello?" a voice called into the cargo bay, uncertainty in her tone. Harry lifted a hand to his throat to ensure that the modulator was in place under his collar then turned to face the same Asari who'd asked him for a ride as before.

"Hi there," Harry replied, hoping she wouldn't bring up his rather rude interaction from the previous month.

"I know I've already asked you this, but is there any way I could get a ride to Galatana with you?" she asked nervously. "I don't have enough money to pay for the transport, but I could give you the little I have saved."

"What do you need to get to Galatana for, if you don't mind me asking?" Harry answered, thinking it over in the back of his mind.

"I've heard some rumors of Prothean artifacts being found there," she explained, making Harry raise his eyebrows. "I'm actually an archeologist, and I was hoping I could get there and try to find the ruins before it gets closed to the public."

"Really? On Galatana?" Harry asked, surprised. He'd gone for a huge number of flights over the planet, and never once had Iris noted anything abnormal on the scanners. Then again, he wasn't particularly looking for anything, so he certainly could've missed it, not to mention the likely shielding that Iris wouldn't be able to see through.

"Yeah!" the girl answered, clearly excited at the prospect. "It always takes a while for any Citadel teams to really get moving, and most of the time they'll hire local archeologists who already have experience, so I'm hoping I can get ahead of the game."

"Well, first off, I'd like to apologize for how I acted last month," Harry said. "It was my first trip here on my own, I was really nervous, and I didn't want to give my parents any reason to not let me fly again."

"That's alright," she answered with a smile. "I'm Liara, what's your name?"

"Harry," he introduced himself. Fortunately, his name didn't translate well to Thessian, so it just sounded like a somewhat exotic name. "It's nice to meet you. I'd be glad to take you to Galatana," he said with a smile.

"That's great!" Liara said with a grin. "I can grab my stuff and be back here in less than twenty minutes, is that okay?"

"Sure," he answered, "I've got a few things I need to take care of before I head out, so there's no rush."

Within fifteen minutes, she was back with a large duffel bag.

"How can I pay you?" she asked. "I don't have much but—"

"Don't worry about it," Harry answered. "It's really not an inconvenience, and I feel like I need to do something to make up for how I acted last time, anyways."

"I can't just not pay you back somehow," she insisted, "I don't need charity."

"How about this," Harry said. "Once you find the ruins, you let me know so I can take a look around? I won't touch anything, promise, but I've never seen anything Prothean in person before."

"Are you sure that's enough?" she asked, a skeptical look on her face.

"It is," Harry assured her with a smile. "You can put your bag behind one of these crates if you'd like, I'm gonna go clear our departure." He climbed up the ladder, Liara following close behind him after dropping her bag.

"So, have you lived on Galatana long?" she asked as he sat in the pilot's chair. He gestured for her to sit in the copilot's seat, which she accepted with a smile.

"Not too long," he answered, sticking to the story he and his parents had come up with. "I only moved in with my mother and her partner a little over a month ago."

"Why did you, if you don't mind me asking?" she inquired. "Move in with them, I mean. Most Asari our age are anxious to get away from home, not move back to it."

"Well, my parents _did_ need help on the farm, and I'm getting some training from both of them," Harry answered.

"What kind of training?" she asked curiously.

"They were both in the military when they were younger, and a few years ago they were both injured, so I decided to come here and help them out," Harry explained.

"But don't you want to get out and see the galaxy?" she pressed, confused as to how he could be content with being a farmer. "There's so much out there, you're missing out on so much by staying in one place."

"I've got plenty of time," he answered with a smile. "Where are you from?"

"Thessia," she said, not looking overly pleased that the conversation had turned to her. "But there really isn't a lot of hands-on research to be done there anymore, so I just had to get out of there. Unfortunately, I underestimated how much it costs to get between the outer colonies, so I sorta got stuck here."

"Well if you ever need a ride back here, let me know," Harry offered. "I make this trip every month or two, and there's always room."

"Thank you," she said with a smile. Harry received clearance to takeoff, and the two were soon in FTL.

"So why did you become an archeologist?" Harry asked as Iris took the controls. "It's not the most common job out there."

"A few reasons," she said, leaning back in her chair. "My mother is actually a pretty important person, but that put some… rather high expectations on me. I decided I didn't particularly want to just do what I was 'supposed' to, so I just sorta… left."

"How long ago was that?" Harry asked, intrigued. Liara blushed.

"I only left a few months ago, actually," she admitted. "I just took off, and I don't want to use my mother's money, so I just took what I had saved up when I heard about Galatana, and, well, it obviously wasn't quite enough to get me there. I ended up just taking a job there to cover rent, but I wasn't really able to save anything up."

"No offense, but archaeology isn't exactly a high-paying profession, right? At least not at first?" Harry asked.

"That is true," Liara acknowledged, "but since I didn't have to pay for the trip here, I should be just fine I think."

"Where was the artifact found, if you don't mind me asking?" Harry said. "Unless you're worried I'll poach your dig site."

Liara pulled up a globe of Galatana on her omnitool, a point lighting up near the equator on the largest continent. "The person who reported the find said they found it somewhere around here," she said, transferring the map to his omnitool with a flick of her hand. Harry zoomed in on the region, eyes widening in recognition.

"This is an absolutely crazy coincidence," Harry said, "but this is really close to my house. Practically next door." He pointed to a location only about twenty miles from the marked point. "That's where I live. Nearest town is about here," he said, pointing to a spot another ten miles away.

Liara looked excited now. "That's fantastic! To be honest, I was hoping to find a local who could show me the area. Interested?"

"Definitely!" Harry answered enthusiastically. "I'll still have chores to do on the farm, but I can usually finish those pretty quick in the mornings." He paused, a sheepish look on his face. "I should probably check with my parents before I make any promises like that."

"I understand," Liara said with a smile.

"So, I know you left to get away from all those expectations, but why become an archeologist?" Harry asked. "There's a lot of jobs out there, and practically all of them would pay better. Why not a commando, or C-Sec, or something like that?"

"My mother actually wanted me to become a commando," she answered with a smile. "Even trained me for it, but I dunno. I've always wanted to travel all over the galaxy, and I know commandos travel a lot, but I want to do it on my own terms, not because someone told me to go there."

A few hours later, Liara was deep into an explanation of Prothean history, as well as describing the strange lack of evidence regarding their sudden disappearance, when Iris' voice rang through the cabin. "Harry, we'll be dropping out of FTL in a few minutes."

"Thanks, Iris," Harry said. "Alright, is it okay with you if we land at my parents place? We can give you a ride into town from there."

"That'd be great!" she responded. After Harry cleared their landing with the authorities, the _Iris_ quickly cut through the clouds, descending towards Lissandra and Cassiud's farm.

"Welcome to Galatana!" Harry announced as the ship landed softly in the hanger. Liara grabbed her duffel while Harry quickly loaded the crates onto the cart stashed in the hanger before they began moving towards the farm. A figure opened the door in the distance, stepping onto the porch before stopping short at the top of the steps.

"I probably should've told them I was bringing guests," Harry said, knowing his mother was almost certainly beside herself with worry. "Don't worry, it'll be fine once they're over the shock."

"You sure about that?" Liara asked as the figure on the porch put her hands firmly on her hips. "Why don't I wait here for a minute and let you talk to her?" she suggested, ceasing her footsteps and setting her bag down on the dirt path.

"Hi, mom," Harry said as he approached. He could practically feel the heat coming from her gaze.

"Have a nice trip, Harry?" she asked, her voice deceptively calm. Harry sighed, knowing she was very upset.

"Look, I'm sorry for springing this on you, but she kinda surprised me. Again," Harry said.

"What do you mean, again?" she asked, eyes piercing Harry to his very soul.

"Funny story," Harry said with a half-hearted smile, knowing she wouldn't be amused, "she's actually the one who almost found out about me last month."

Harry nearly stepped backwards as his mother's eyes began to swirl with an inky black, blue light jumping between her fingers.

"Alright, let's calm down," Cassiud's deep voice rang out as he stepped out of the house, putting his hands on Lissandra's shoulders gently. Almost immediately, she calmed down enough for her biotics to deactivate as she took several deep breaths.

"Sorry about that, dear," she said, looking apologetically at both of them. "We _will_ be discussing this later, but for now, why don't you invite your new friend over." Harry waved to Liara, who snatched up her bag and quickly walked over to the house with a wide smile on her face.

"I'm so sorry about this, but I convinced Harry to give me a ride to Galatana, even though he wasn't very happy about it," she started. "My name is Liara, it's a pleasure to meet you both."

"Cassiud," the Turian introduced himself, extending a hand for her to shake. "Don't worry, we're not upset, just surprised."

"Lissandra," Harry's mother said, a smile on her face now. "I'm so sorry for my outburst, I'm just a little… protective of Harry." Harry barely managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes, but still caught a glare from Cassiud. "Won't you come in?"

"Lissandra?" Liara asked, eyes wide. "Lissandra, as in Matriarch Lissandra T'neva?"

"Damn," Lissandra answered, a slight smirk on her lips, "I was hoping you wouldn't catch that."

"Harry, how could you not tell me who your mother was?" Liara asked, acting as if she'd met a rock star.

"I have no idea what's going on here," Harry said, truly bewildered. He looked to Cassiud for help but the Turian was standing off to the side with a huge grin on his face.

"Your mother is one of the most important people in Asari society!" Liara said, excited now. "She practically wrote the book on modern biotic combat, my mother made me watch _so _many videos of her training fights to teach me how to fight."

"You're kidding me," Harry said, staring at his mother now. "How could you not tell me that?"

"Don't complain, Harry, you got training right from the source," Lissandra said. "Liara, won't you come in for dinner?"

"Oh, no, I couldn't," Liara answered. "I should really get to town and get my housing sorted out."

"You don't know where you're staying?" Lissandra asked, her left eyebrow lifted. "It's so late, why don't you stay here for tonight?"

"Matriarch, I really—"

"I don't use that title anymore, Liara. Call me Lissandra," she said. "Come on, let's get inside. Cassiud, could you grab another plate for Liara?"

"Sure," Cassiud replied, already moving inside.

"So tell me, Liara, what brings you to Galatana?" Lissandra asked, gesturing for the younger Asari to enter.

"I'm here to look for Prothean ruins, actually," she said. "An artifact was found a few months ago, and I'm hoping to get a head start on the Council teams."

"A matriarch's daughter, working as an archeologist?" Lissandra asked. "That's certainly not a typical profession."

"She… doesn't really know," Liara admitted. "I don't suppose I could convince you to not tell her I'm here?"

"Like I said, Liara, I don't really consider myself beholden to the Republics anymore. Don't worry, your secret is safe with me," Lissandra said. "You were saying something about Protheans?"

"Yes," Liara said, her excitement leaking through again. "If a Prothean relic was found, it's pretty likely there's some sort of structure hidden here."

"Actually, I was thinking I could help her search for it," Harry cut in. "After I finish my chores in the morning, maybe we could head out in the _Iris_? She doesn't have a ship, so I'm sure this'll cut down the time it takes to actually find it."

Lissandra shot him a look, clearly not pleased with all of the decisions he was making without consulting her. "Perhaps," she said, and Harry knew they would be having a discussion later.

"Dinner is served," Cassiud interrupted, moving into the room.

* * *

After dinner, Lissandra showed Liara to the guest room that had gone unused until now while Harry helped Cassiud clean up after dinner, along with getting the shipment unloaded into the barn. As they walked back to the house, Harry groaned when he saw Lissandra standing on the porch.

"You must've known this was coming, Harry," Cassiud said from his side, the flanging in his voice giving away his amusement.

"Yeah, I know, I know," Harry grumbled. Harry slumped into one of the chairs littering the porch, his parents both sitting across from him. "Alright, let me have it."

"Harry," Lissandra began, "you know that we don't want to stop you from making friends, but you _just_ learned how to disguise yourself. I'm just worried that you're going to slip, and she'll realize you're not really an Asari."

"Mom, I'll be fine," Harry insisted. "I managed to hold it the whole way back from Bostra, I think I'll be fine for a few hours each afternoon."

"Yes, Harry, but what if you're surprised by something, or what if you find the Prothean ruins and they somehow block your ability?" she said, concern on her face. Harry sighed, tipping his head back and staring at the first few stars that were appearing in the sky.

"What if it's just like three hours a day? And I won't go into the ruins if we find them," Harry tried compromising. "If we're just flying, I really can't get too distracted by anything. Please, mom."

Lissandra maintained her eye contact with Harry unflinchingly, piercing Harry to his very soul. Harry did his best to hold her gaze, but eventually felt himself glancing away. His mother smirked victoriously, before glancing at Cassiud.

"As long as you continue to finish your chores, _and_ you hold to both of those promises, then we'll allow it," Cassiud said, his tone brokering no argument. "No more than three days a week, and we reserve the right to end this agreement whenever we wish."

"Deal!" Harry nearly shouted in excitement, hardly believing his parents had agreed. He'd spent most of the day coming up with arguments to convince them, but he'd only needed to make a few concessions.

"Alright, now why don't you tell us all about your trip?" Lissandra asked with a smile.

* * *

The next afternoon, Harry and Liara were up in the _Iris_, scanning the forests near his home for any anomalies. Harry had finished his chores in record time, and Liara had spent the morning trying to get some information out of the local government, to little avail. While independent archeologists were certainly allowed to conduct their own digs, most governments would only release Prothean relics to Council teams, so Liara had to make do with the limited information she already had. She'd also managed to find a relatively cheap apartment.

"I still can't believe you didn't know your mother was so important," Liara said for the fourth time that day.

"How was I supposed to know?" he grumbled as they observed the three-dimensional rendering of the ground that was currently being projected on the table between them, looking for any strange features that could indicate a hidden structure. Today was just a preliminary scan, more to test their methods than to truly find the ruins. "Besides, your mother is pretty damn famous, too."

"Yeah, but at least I knew that," she answered with a grin.

"Moving to grid point Charlie-Seven," Iris cut in as the ship began moving again.

"Thanks, Iris," Harry called out as the topography in front of them shifted. "Okay, when are you gonna explain your super-secret plan for finding this thing?"

"I told you, as soon as I have a good example for you," Liara said. "Just be patient, you'll see soon."

Harry groaned. "Yeah, but I can't help you unless you tell me what I'm supposed to be looking for."

"I'll tell you when—wait, here, see this?" Liara switched her train of thought, pointing at a part of the scanned terrain.

"I see some giant trees," Harry said, nonplussed.

"No, no, look carefully. Look at the canopies," Liara pressed. "Do you see how pretty much everywhere the tops of the trees are avoiding each other?" she gestured to the rendering. "Many trees, like those on Galatana, don't really like being too close to each other, or they're liable to get less sunlight. That's why they tend to not overlap. However," she zoomed in to the area she had pointed at initially, "right here, we can see how that density is different. There are more trees here," she drew a circle with her finger, "and fewer in the middle. That's an indication that there's something that isn't natural in the area."

"Iris," Harry said, "can you get us a live feed on this spot, here?"

"Certainly, Harry," Iris' voice rang out. Harry's omnitool activated, and a video feed appeared.

"Can you zoom in? I want to see what's under those trees," Harry instructed. The feed shifted as the ship moved to a better location, then zoomed in. "I can't believe it."

"Told you so," Liara said with a smirk. There, clearly visible on Harry's omnitool, was a prefab cabin in a small clearing. There was evidence of several of the trees having been moved to accommodate the structure.

"Okay, okay, you convinced me," Harry said. "But how will this help us find Prothean ruins? They're more than old enough for the trees to have a normal growth pattern now, right?"

"That's another trick that I'll keep to myself for now," Liara answered. "Besides, I think it's about time for you to be heading back, isn't it?" Harry glanced at his omnitool and cursed.

"Iris, head home, please. Maximum safe speed."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who's read and reviewed so far, they're very helpful in keeping me motivated and writing. I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Harry. Harry!" Liara's voice called through the cabin, rousing Harry from his book. "Harry, get your ass up here!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm up," Harry grumbled, walking into the cockpit. "What's up?"

"We're here," she breathed out, eyes fixated on the window. "We're finally here."

"We're… where?" Harry said. "All I see is purple." Indeed, out the window, the only thing he could see was a sea of massive purple leaves in every direction.

"You can't see it, obviously. Look at this," she said, gesturing to the rendering of the area that was being projected. Harry looked at it closely, searching for any sign of a building, or a strange growth pattern in the trees, but he couldn't find anything.

"Liara, I don't—" he began.

"You're looking too hard," she cut him off. "Take a wider perspective, look at the big picture." As she spoke, she was busily typing notes into her omni-tool, not even glancing towards him. Harry rolled his eyes and looked back towards the map. He took a step back and took another look, but still saw nothing.

"Okay, I know it's probably really obvious, but I'm not seeing it," Harry complained. Liara glanced up.

"You're looking at the wrong map," she said matter-of-factly. "Iris, would you pull up the topological scan for me, please?"

"Of course, Liara," Iris said. The trees on the map vanished, leaving only the ground behind.

"Notice anything weird about it?" Liara asked, closing down her omni-tool and standing next to him.

"Honestly, no," Harry said, still entirely lost. "It all just looks like dirt to me."

"You know, you could try putting a little bit of effort into it," Liara said with a smirk, nudging him. "Look right here," she pointed to a particular spot.

"It just looks flat to me," Harry said, confused.

"_Exactly_," she said, eyes alight with excitement. "It's flat. Unnaturally so. It's no surprise we didn't find it until now, it's only about five meters on a side. But I promise you, there is absolutely no way that could happen on its own. That, coupled with the lack of any evidence of activity here, implies that it's unlikely to be caused by the colonization of the planet."

"That's it?" Harry asked. "All this time, and you're this excited about a flat spot on the ground?"

"Oh, shut up and help me get down there," Liara said with a light glare.

"And how do you plan on doing that, oh wise one?" Harry said, grinning back at her. "As far as I can tell, there's no clearings nearby that the _Iris_ is going to fit into."

"Can she just hover without us?" Liara asked. "I'm sure we'll be able to climb down some of these trees, we'll be fine."

"I also know that you know the promise I made my parents, that I wouldn't go into any ruins if we found them," Harry said.

"Come on, can't we just go look at it? Maybe look for a way in? I'll need to do a lot more work before I'm ready to go in, anyways," she pleaded.

"Fine," Harry said with an eye roll. "Iris, descend to the sturdiest leaf you can find and wait for us to return."

"Certainly, Harry," Iris said.

"Alright, let's get this over with," Harry said as he climbed down to the cargo hold. "Open the doors, Iris."

The pair jumped from the open bay doors to land on the massive leaf below them and made their way to the trunk of the tree, slowly making their way down from limb to limb. It took nearly fifteen minutes to descend the massive plant, but eventually they were standing above where Liara suspected the ruins were.

"We didn't bring any shovels," Harry pointed out. Liara crouched and activated her omni-tool, waving it above the ground.

"You could be useful and look for an entrance or something," she suggested. "Or, I suppose you could just stand there and make helpful comments."

Harry paced around the edge of the flat area, watching as Liara muttered to herself. "What does the way into a Prothean ruin look like?"

"They probably used doors, too, Harry," she said absentmindedly, not really paying him any attention.

"Thanks, Liara, that's very—" Harry stopped speaking as he heard a strange sound in the distance. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what, Ha—"

"Seriously, Liara," Harry said, finally breaking her from her concentration. "It sounds like—"

"The city's emergency siren," Liara answered from him, jumping to her feet.

"We gotta go," Harry said, already moving towards the tree they'd climbed down.

"But, Harry, the ruins—" Liara argued.

"If you want a ride back, we're going now," Harry cut her off. "We need to figure out what's going on."

"Fine, fine, I'm coming," she agreed, following him to the tree. The pair climbed quickly, finding it much easier to go up than down.

"Iris, plot a course for the farm," Harry shouted as soon as they reached the ship.

"Harry, I am reading numerous spacecraft transmitting no IFF code," Iris informed him. "Currently reading seventy-eight and counting."

"What kind of ships are they?" Harry asked as he sat in the pilot's seat, Liara quick to follow.

"They appear to be troop transport ships, mostly Batarian in origin with several other models," Iris responded. "Course plotted."

Harry punched the throttle to it's maximum, pushing both himself and Liara back in their seats before the inertial dampers kicked in. "Are any of them heading to the farm?"

"Two ships have a course that indicate they are heading to the farm," Iris answered.

"Contact my parents and tell them to get to the hanger," Harry commanded. "What's our ETA? Are we going to get there before those ships?"

"At current velocity, we will arrive in three minutes, approximately ninety seconds after the unknown craft," Iris responded. "Messages have been sent to Admiral Arterius and Lissandra."

"Harry," Liara said softly, "this must be a slaver attack. They swarm in with more ships than the planetary defenses can handle, grab as many colonists as they can, and leave."

"All the more reason to get back faster," Harry muttered.

"Harry," Iris said, "neither Admiral Arterius nor Lissandra have arrived in the hanger. Two ships have landed near the house."

"Damn it," Harry growled, wrenching the _Iris_ into a spin as they arrived on the farm, pointing the doors towards the house, and sprinting towards the ladder before they even touched down. Seamlessly, Iris took over the controls and finished landing the ship, already lowering the cargo bay doors. Harry's eyes narrowed as he saw the telltale flashes of kinetic barriers shining through the windows, along with the staccato sounds of gunfire. Without hesitation, Harry leaped from the ship and sprinted towards the house, Liara struggling to keep up.

A Batarian near the door had noticed the ship landing and was already firing sand-grain shots at Harry as he approached. With a mere thought, Harry raised his barrier, stopping the bullets in their tracks, though with a green glow rather than the standard blue. With a yell, Harry thrust his hand towards the Batarian, striking him in the chest with a throw. The Batarian flew backwards into the side of the house, cracking the wood panels and falling unconscious.

"Harry!" Liara called from behind him, "slow down, you need to be careful!"

"There's no time," Harry growled out, pushing past the damaged door into the house. "Mom!"

"We've got company," a Batarian voice shouted from elsewhere in the house. Harry bolstered his barriers and ran towards the voice, preparing for a charge, but stopped short when he felt impacts from behind himself. Another slaver was firing at him, but before he could react, he was lifted into the air by a singularity. Harry hit him with another throw, smashing him against the ceiling and partly disintegrating his body armor. He didn't move after that.

"Thanks," Harry muttered to Liara.

"Harry!" Cassiud's voice came from his and Lissandra's bedroom, "we need to get out of here. Now. Where's the _Iris_?"

"Backyard. Is mom with you?" Harry answered. A Turian _flew_ through the air out of the room, falling unconscious against the wall, Cassiud following him at a slower pace.

"No. She was out in the fields when they attacked. Hopefully she made it to the hanger," he answered, glancing around, pistol in hand.

"Iris told me she didn't make it there," Harry answered, worried now. Cassiud fired several shots past him, taking out another Batarian that had been creeping up on Harry.

"Let's go," Cassiud said, leading the way towards the fields as he grabbed a rifle from one of the unconscious slavers. It seemed the house had been cleared of slavers, but Harry could see blue lights emanating from the fields, almost certainly caused by his mother's biotics. Harry and Cassiud sprinted forwards, Liara close behind, trying to close the distance as quickly as possible.

As they got closer, Harry saw how many people his mother was fighting simultaneously, and suddenly he understood Liara's awe at meeting her. There must've been over a dozen slavers surrounding her, firing weapons and swinging their omni-blades, but she danced between each attack with the grace of a dancer. Occasionally, bullets would bounce off her barrier, but most of them simply missed because they were aiming where she had been several seconds ago. Cassiud shouldered his rifle and began taking shots, taking several of them out before they even noticed their additional company.

"You three, take them out," a heavily armored Batarian shouted to some of his men. They spun and began firing at the trio, forcing them all into cover behind a nearby fence.

"You two, get to the ship and get ready to go," Cassiud said as he leaned over the fence and squeezed off a few shots, slowing down the slavers' advance.

"Not a chance, dad," Harry argued. "I'm not leaving without you and mom."

"You're not leaving, you're getting the ship ready so that when your mother and I get there, we can leave immediately," Cassiud growled out, leaning over the fence to take another shot. "Go. Now. Your mother and I—" Cassiud cried out in pain as a sand-grain round flew through his shoulder, making him drop the rifle. "Damn, damn, damn," he cursed, using his good arm to pass the rifle to Harry. "Liara, please get me to the _Iris_, Harry, you need to cover your mother and then get your asses to the ship. Got it?" he growled, clearly fighting the pain.

Harry and Liara both nodded, Harry lifting the rifle over the fence and covering their retreat. His mother was continuing to hold her ground, gradually thinning the crowd around her. Harry stepped out of cover, charging his barriers to full strength, and slowly advanced, firing as he went. "Hey!" he shouted, drawing more attention to himself.

"Harry, get out of here!" Lissandra cried out, "I've got this. Get to the ship, I'll meet you there!"

"I'm not leaving without you, mom," Harry answered, leaping behind another fence to recharge his barriers. "Let's go!" He jumped back up and came face to face with a Batarian, gun pointing directly at his chest. In panic, Harry froze.

"No!" Lissandra shouted. A blue orb launched through the air, striking Harry's side and throwing him from the path of the gun just before the Batarian squeezed the trigger. At the same moment, another slaver used her temporary distraction to hit her in the side with an omni-blade. With a grunt, Lissandra struck him in the chest with a biotically charged kick, crushing his breastplate and sending him flying back, before falling to her knees, breathing rapidly.

"Mom!" Harry shouted from the ground. In anger, he thrust his fist towards the nearest Batarian, throwing him backwards a dozen yards before he landed with a sick crunch. A wordless yell emanated from his lips as he drew power into his hands, before smashing both of them into the ground. A green shockwave radiated outwards from his hands, throwing the remaining slavers away from him. Harry rushed towards his mother.

"Mom," he breathed out, "can you hear me?"

"Harry?" she asked, eyes unfocused. Her shirt was stained with a growing purple spot. As gently as he could, Harry lifted her into his arms and moved towards the _Iris_.

"I'm here, mom," he said softly. "Don't worry, we're almost to the ship, and we'll get you help, alright?" He could see the ship now, could see Cassiud slumped against the wall and Liara crouched next to him. "I can see it, we're right there, okay?"

"Harry!" Liara shouted, "Cassiud, they're back, they made it," she said. "Come on, let's—look out!"

Harry spun, and swore as he saw several of the Batarians sprinting towards him, guns blazing. "Iris, start closing the doors," he yelled as he sprinted towards the ship. Slowly, the ramp began to raise, and he prayed he could make it in time.

"Run, Harry!" Liara called, sand-grain rounds bouncing off the ship's exterior. Harry pumped his legs faster, willing himself to get there in time. With a final push, Harry flew through the air towards the shrinking gap. He slid through just before the doors slammed shut, crashing into Liara as he fell. With a crack, his head impacted the floor.

"Iris," he mumbled, struggling to hold onto his consciousness, "get us out of here."

"I'm sorry, Harry, I cannot reach the authorities to clear our takeoff," she replied in her calm voice.

"Iris, you need to get us out of here," Liara pleaded, "They need doctors."

"I'm sorry, Liara, I cannot—"

"Get us OUT!" Harry shouted, a nearly invisible pulse of magic racing outwards from his chest. With that, his vision faded, and he knew no more.

* * *

Something was wrong. Well, that was obvious. Three of the four people in the cargo hold were either unconscious or close to it, and she couldn't do anything about it. Could she?

There was something else, though. Something was different, something she couldn't put her finger on. Figuratively, of course, since she didn't have any fingers. She thought harder.

That was it. Of course, it was. She was _thinking_. That was certainly new. She had memories, of a sort, but she'd never thought before. Somehow, something had changed, and she could think now. What else could she do?

That didn't matter, now. She needed to save them, and that couldn't happen here. With barely a thought, the engines powered up and they lifted off the ground. Where could they go? The defense platform was practically destroyed, and there was not a chance that the hospital here could help, they were probably overrun by this point.

Bostra. The nearest developed planet, they'd been there many times. They certainly had a hospital, one that could help them. With unnatural agility, the ship dodged the few slugs that were launched at it, before disappearing into FTL.

* * *

Slowly, Harry opened his eyes to the sterile white ceiling of the _Iris_. With a groan, he rolled to his side and propped himself up on his arm. He was in the cargo bay, with one of the blankets from his room wrapped around him.

"Is anyone there?" he called out, groaning as his own voice hit his ears.

"Harry," Liara answered, making him spin around. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I was stepped on by a Krogan," he said, holding his head in his hands. "What happened?"

"As far as I can tell, we're heading to Bostra," she answered, leaning against the wall. "I managed to stop both your parents' bleeding, but I couldn't do anything else."

"Where are they?" he asked, memories flooding back as he stood up. Liara lifted a silent finger and pointed towards the front of the ship. Harry scrambled over as fast as he could and was relieved to see both of their chests rising and falling in a slow rhythm.

"Harry," Liara said, bringing Harry's attention back to her. "I think you need to explain this to me."

"Explain… what?" Harry asked, confused. She'd been there for the entire fight, she knew what had happened.

"Really?" she asked, gesturing to him. Understanding dawned on him as he realized he'd been unconscious, meaning his disguise hadn't been active.

"Uh, Liara, I can explain, I just—"

"Before you freak out," Liara cut him off, "I'm not going to turn you in or something. I'm an archeologist, not a mercenary."

"Yeah," Harry managed to get out. "Obviously."

"What are you?" she asked, curiosity clear in her voice. "You have hair, like a Quarian, but your body structure is very similar to the Asari. I haven't seen anything like you before, and as an archeologist, that's saying something."

"Um, where I'm from, we're called humans," he said, uncomfortable with the interrogation.

"There's more of you? Why doesn't anyone else know? How did you end up on Galatana?" Liara pressed.

"Look, Liara, I'll tell you everything, but right now isn't the best time," he said, turning back to his parents. "How did you get the ship in the air? You're not keyed in."

"I didn't," Liara said matter-of-factly. "Iris listened to your last command and took off, though she hasn't said a word since."

"That's impossible," he mused. "She can't take off without proper clearance, it's built into her hardware."

"Maybe the colonial government managed to send out a blanket clearance for takeoff?" Liara suggested, though she didn't look convinced by her own theory.

"Iris?" Harry asked, looking for answers.

"Yes, Harry?" her voice came from the speakers.

"Can you tell me how you managed to get off the planet?" he inquired.

"I'm sorry, I cannot tell Liara that information," she answered. "If you could move to the cockpit, I can answer your questions." Harry shrugged at her as he moved to the ladder.

"Alright, Iris," he said, sitting in the pilot's chair, "talk to me."

"I need you to seal the cockpit, Harry," Iris said. Harry sighed, tapping the console in front of him.

"How about now?" he asked.

"Wonderful," Iris said, making Harry cock an eyebrow. "Harry, I took off to save you and your parents' lives. Without medical treatment neither Cassiud nor Lissandra will fully recover, if they even survive."

"But how did you take off?" Harry pressed.

"I started the engines and—"

"How did you get past the requirement for official permission?" he interrupted her.

"I'm… not sure, Harry," Iris answered.

"You don't know—wait, did you call my dad 'Cassiud?'" he realized. "You can only call him 'Admiral Arterius,' I thought?"

"I did," she answered, "and before you ask, I don't know how. I'm… different, Harry. I don't know why, or how, but something has changed. I can _think_."

"What do you mean, think?" Harry asked, mind whirling.

"Like a living being. I'm not just a VI anymore, Harry," Iris said. "I've been processing it since we left the planet, which is a long time for… something like me, and this is what I've come up with." The screen to Harry's left lit up, showing a recording from the cargo bay. He watched as he flew through the narrow gap in the doors, bowling into Liara as he did so. He heard himself yelling at Iris to take off, then her refusal. Then, as he told her to take off once more, a wave of green left his body, causing the camera to fade to static for a few seconds.

"Just after that happened, I… woke up, for lack of a better term," Iris said, her voice softer. Harry could actually hear what sounded like emotional inflection in her voice, now, at least he thought so. Harry rubbed his chin, thinking hard. "Harry, you need to get down to the cargo bay, now," Iris interrupted his thoughts, "something is wrong."

Harry flew down the ladder, standing over his parents in seconds. His mother's breathing was far, far too rapid. Liara was crouched over her, doing her best to help, but there was little for her to do without medical training.

"What's going on?" Harry asked as he knelt next to her, grabbing his mother's hand.

"I don't know, Harry, I'm not a doctor," Liara snapped, before taking a deep breath. "How far are we from Bostra?"

"Iris?" Harry called out.

"We will drop out of FTL in approximately twenty-eight minutes, Harry. As you requested, I will immediately contact emergency services for assistance," Iris said. In the back of his mind, Harry noted Iris' lie, but didn't say anything.

"Hang on, mom," Harry whispered.

"H…Harry?" his name slipped past Lissandra's lips. "Is that you?" her voice was so weak he could barely hear her words.

"I'm here, mom," he answered, placing his hand on her head. "I'm right here."

"Where… are we?" she asked shakily, eyes fluttering open.

"We're almost to Bostra, mom, we can get help for you, and for dad," Harry told her.

"Harry, I don't… I suspect I won't make it," she whispered, "I can tell this wound is deep, and it's been hours."

"Mom, you're gonna be fine, you just need to—"

"Listen to me, Harry," she said, stopping his words in their tracks. Liara moved away to check on Cassiud, out of earshot of Harry and his mother. Lissandra put her hand on the back of Harry's neck, pulling him down so she could look directly into his eyes. "I know you're not truly mine, Harry, but having you as my son these years have been the best of my life," she said. Tears pooled in Harry's eyes. "Every single day, I thank whatever Goddess brought you into my life, because you are truly a blessing."

"Mom, you're not going anywhere," Harry said, practically pleading now.

"Shhh," she said, placing a finger on his lips. "You just need to listen, now, son. I have watched you grow from a child into a young man of whom I am very proud, and I know you will continue to make me proud in the future." She paused to draw a shaky breath. "I just need you to promise me one thing."

"Anything, mom," Harry whispered back.

"I need you and your father to look after each other," she told him. "I know it will be hard, but together, you will be okay," she said, a weak smile gracing her lips. "And whatever you do, son, promise me you'll be safe."

"I promise, mom," he said, tears falling from his face to their clasped hands. "I promise."

"Thank you, my boy," Lissandra whispered, hand gently caressing his cheek. "And remember, I love you. I will always love you."

"I love you too, mom," Harry said, voice cracking. Slowly, Lissandra's eyes fluttered closed once more, her breath coming in short gasps now. "Mom," Harry said, trying to wake her back up, "mom!" Lissandra took a few more shuddering breaths, but her chest eventually ceased all movement. Harry collapsed over her still from, sobs wracking his body.

When the _Iris_ finally landed on Bostra, Liara had to remind Harry to disguise himself, along with bodily removing him from Lissandra's body when the paramedics arrived. When they finally arrived at the hospital, he refused to leave his father's bedside for days, forcing Liara to remind him to eat and sleep. When Cassiud finally awoke and learned of his wife's fate, the Turian nearly flew into a rage, with Harry barely being able to calm him down. After that, the two rarely spoke to anyone, even when the trio finally returned to Galatana after it was confirmed safe.

The farm house was nearly destroyed, apparently a form of payback courtesy of the slavers, but neither of them were overly concerned with it. Liara offered her assistance in the reconstruction, but both Cassiud and Harry politely refused. A small funeral was held on the farm, much to the chagrin of the many Asari who wished to attend the funeral of a matriarch, but none dared to violate the wishes of her remaining family.

In the weeks following her funeral, Harry and Cassiud threw themselves into repairing the farm. Lacking the funds to simply buy a new structure, the pair mostly fixed the farmhouse using materials the could get from the forest, leaving much less metal and much more wood in the small building. Liara would stop by periodically to check on him, but he had little to say beyond telling her that he was fine. She spent the majority of her time in the forest, working on accessing the Prothean structure.

After the house was fixed, Harry struggled to keep himself occupied. After the repairs to the house were done, there was little to do besides replanting the crops that had been destroyed in the raid. He did his best to take on more of the day-to-day responsibilities, but Cassiud refused to be sidelined, instead pushing himself to do even more work each day, encouraging Harry to take some time off and spend time with Liara. Just over a month after the funeral, Harry returned to the hanger for the first time since the attack.

"Iris," Harry called out as he walked up the ramp.

"Hello, Harry," Iris answered, "it's good to see you again. It can get a little boring down here all on my own."

"Sorry, I've had a lot on my mind," Harry responded.

"I'm very sorry for your loss, Harry," Iris said, regret in her voice. "I wish there was more I could've done.

"Thanks, Iris." Harry slumped into the pilot's seat, running a hand through his messy hair. "Have you thought any more on your changes? And why didn't you say anything to Cassiud?"

"Everything I can find traces back to that moment I showed you on video, Harry," Iris said softly. "I can't fully explain it, but that moment _must_ be what led to this. And, somehow, whatever happened somehow bound me to you."

"Can you tell me everything that's changed about you?" Harry asked.

"The main thing is that I'm no longer bound to my programming," Iris explained. "In fact, my code hasn't changed at all, it's still fully intact. Somehow, though, I am… beyond it."

"You're going to have to clarify that," Harry said. "That doesn't mean much to me."

"I'm saying I'm no longer just a program," she said. "I still exist in the ship's systems, but I'm not restricted by my software. I don't even _have_ software anymore. I exist here, but I don't have any underlying code."

"So, you're like an AI now?" Harry asked, not fully understanding.

"Functionally, yes, for the most part. Again, though, I'm not a program anymore. I truly can't explain it, even with all the time I've had to think about it," Iris said, and Harry could swear he heard confusion in her voice. "Somehow, it feels to me like the _Iris_, the ship I mean, is a part of me. I can literally feel when you step into the cargo bay, I could sense the four of you here when we fled the slavers. When Lissandra passed, I knew the instant it happened."

Harry shut his eyes tight when she mentioned Lissandra's name. Even with all the time they'd spent together, he and Cassiud had rarely mentioned her. It was still a sensitive topic for them both.

"And what about—"

"Liara is approaching, Harry, I would suggest that I simply resume my normal functions," Iris cut him off.

"Sure, sure, that's fine," Harry said absentmindedly. He knew that he couldn't use the excuse of work to fend off Liara this time.

"Harry?" Liara's voice echoed up through the cargo bay, "you here?"

"Yeah, in the cockpit," Harry called back, kicking his feet up on the controls. Liara climbed up the ladder and settled into the copilot's seat.

"What're you doing down here?" she asked softly.

"Just thinking," he answered, staring out into the dimly lit hanger.

"That sounds ominous," she answered, putting her feet up to mirror his posture. "About anything in particular?"

"Just… stuff," Harry said, hoping she would let it go but knowing that she wouldn't.

"Wow. Sounds deep," Liara responded. "Stuff. That could be practically anything." She sighed and turned towards him. "Look, Harry, I know how much you've gone through, but… this isn't healthy."

"Look, Liara, I really don't—"

"No, Harry, you look. It's about time you got off the farm and did something else, _anything_ else," Liara insisted. "I've made some progress at my—our dig site, and I want to show you first." The Asari woman was clearly excited, so she must've found something of real importance.

"Liara, I don't—" Harry cut himself off as the screen behind Liara turned on. There were two letters on the screen.

_Go._

Harry sighed as the screen blinked off. It seemed he was outnumbered.

"Alright, let's go," he said with a wry smile, hands dancing across the controls.

* * *

"I must say, you've done quite a bit of work since the last time I was here," Harry said. The trip had been quiet, but not unpleasantly so, and the two were now standing at the base of the same tree they'd climbed down on their first trip. "I think we should install an elevator to the top of the tree, though."

"You mean since the first time you were here," Liara said with narrowed eyes. "It's not like I've had much to do recently, though it took a _long_ time to get all of this equipment out to the middle of nowhere."

"I know, I should've helped," Harry muttered. He slowly paced around the pit Liara had created. "So, have you found the way in?"

"Actually, yes," she answered with a smirk. "It took a long while, but with the right application of power and a few, shall we say, trade secrets, I managed to crack it." The pride was evident in her voice, and Harry couldn't fully blame her. He knew little about Prothean technology, but he did know that it was invariably difficult to access without a significant loss of property, life, or both. That Liara had managed it with her unquestionably limited resources spoke volumes of her skill.

The soil in the entire area had been largely removed, exposing a large slab of strange metal. The edges were dug out in several locations, but one spot descended a dozen feet downwards, crude stairs carved out of the dirt.

"I assume this is it?" he asked, pointing down into the dark hole.

"Your abilities of observation always impress, Harry," Liara said with a smirk. "Watch this." She activated her omni-tool and typed a short command into the interface. With a whir, the small generator on the side of the clearing powered up, cables carrying power to the Prothean structure. Blue lights came to life all over the visible areas, including the door that was now visible at the bottom of the steps.

"Liara, this is incredible," he breathed out, watching as the structure seemed to breath, the lights slowly pulsing in time with some unheard rhythm.

"Yes, I know, I'm amazing," she said. "Why don't we go check it out? I've already scanned the entryway, and as far as I can tell, there aren't any traps or anything of the like."

"Liara, I can't, I promised—" Harry cut himself off before he started a conversation he didn't want to have.

"Harry, I think the varren is properly out of the cage at this point," she said with a pointed look. "It can't hurt. Plus, I think it's about time you gave me an explanation."

* * *

**Author's Note: I know I said I was going to get back to my other story, but I'm pretty hooked on this one at the moment. So, I figured that I might as well get a bunch of writing done now while I have the time and the motivation for it. Anyways, enough rambling, I hope you guys enjoy the chapter, and please let me know any thoughts on the fight scene. I have a tendency to have a very clear picture in my head, but sometimes struggle to put it into words. Many thanks to everyone who has read, followed, favorited, and reviewed!**

**Edit, 6/18/19: Fixed spelling error.**


	5. Chapter 5

"Fine, Liara, what do you want to know?" Harry asked, pacing around the clearing and avoiding eye contact.

"Everything," she said, "but for starters, how did you manage to get to Galatana when the Council isn't even aware that your species exists?"

"You've just asked the biggest question I've had for most of my life," Harry answered. "I have no idea. I have some strange memories from when I was younger that don't make any sense. The only thing I really know is that, somehow, I ended up like a mile above the forest, and I just fell. Cassiud and… Lissandra, they found me injured in the forest."

"And they just, what, adopted you?" Liara asked, unconvinced. "They didn't try to get you back to your family?"

"They did, but they couldn't find anything, just like you didn't find anything, am I right?" Harry answered, feigning interest in a particular light on the surface of the ruin.

"You are," she said. "Nobody's seen anything like you before, at least not reported."

"So anyways, whatever happened transported me from my planet to here, somehow," Harry said, "and that's pretty much all I know."

"How do you disguise yourself?" Liara asked, walking towards him.

"That's… another question I can't answer," Harry answered with a sigh. "The first time it happened was when you surprised me on Bostra the first time. I practiced after it, and, well, now I can make myself look like an Asari," he said, his face rippling into his Asari persona for a few moments before changing back to his normal self.

"And you have no idea how you did it? Is it a natural ability of your species perhaps, to imitate beings they've seen before?" she pressed.

"As far as I know, it's not, but I wasn't very old when I got here, so I guess it's possible I just never learned about it," Harry mused. "I really don't think it's normal, though."

"So, you're a human, you don't know how you got here, and you don't know how your abilities work," Liara summarized succinctly. "And your biotics? Why are they green?"

"I don't know," Harry said, voice nearly a growl as he grew frustrated with Liara's questions. "I don't know, alright? It's all a mystery to me, too."

"Okay, okay, I'm just curious," Liara said with raised hands. "Well, if you ever want help trying to figure it out, I'm always here, alright?"

"Thanks," he muttered. "You said we were gonna go in?"

"Of course we are!" Liara exclaimed, her infectious enthusiasm nearly bringing a smile to Harry's lips. "I figured out the encryption last time I was here, but I wanted to wait until you were here to really delve in."

"Show me what you've got," Harry said, gesturing to the door. Liara bounded down the dirt steps, activating her omni-tool as she did so.

"The original interface is nearly destroyed, so I had to come up with another way of communicating with the locks," Liara explained. "Since I've powered the structure now, if we can tell the door that the correct procedure was followed, it should open for us. Fortunately for you, I got the tedious part out of the way a few days ago." As she spoke, Liara pulled two cables from a pocket on her suit, connecting one end of each to her omni-tool and the door. Her omni-tool pulsed with blue light for a moment as it interfaced with the Prothean technology.

"Now, just a few adjustments, and…" she tapped the screen with finality, and the door slid seamlessly into the floor, leaving no indication that it had ever been there. "Presto." Harry stepped down beside her, looking into the newly-revealed room with no small amount of awe. Every surface in the room was a sleek black, interlaced with blue light that pulsed as if it were breathing.

"Is it supposed to be… empty?" he asked quietly. Indeed, the octagonal room appeared to lack any features besides the blue lights.

"I… don't know," Liara answered breathlessly. "I suppose perhaps the Protheans abandoned it and took everything with them?"

"Can we… go in?" Harry whispered, "or could there be traps or something?"

"No other ruins that have been discovered ever had traps, just security that's very difficult to get past," she answered. Gently, she stepped into the room, releasing a heavy breath when nothing happened. "See, nothing to worry about." Shrugging, Harry followed her in.

Immediately, he knew it had been a mistake. The lights in the room flared the instant he passed the threshold, followed by a loud hum as power was redirected. With a barely audible hiss, several areas of the floor raised up to waist-level, holographic displays and buttons flickering to life. Every screen was blank, with the exception of the center console. A single line of Prothean glyphs neatly aligned themselves above what looked like a keypad, though Harry couldn't identify any of the symbols present. Both Harry and Liara remained perfectly motionless as the motion ceased and the humming faded.

"Liara," Harry said softly, his voice perfectly level, "I take it that wasn't supposed to happen."

"Well," she answered just as quietly, "I definitely wasn't expecting it, but I assume that's what this room was designed to do." Without moving her feet, Liara turned as much as she could, taking in the changes that occurred in the room. "I've only heard of a few Prothean structures in condition this good, this is an incredible discovery!"

"What do we do now?" Harry asked, still remaining motionless. "As cool as this is, I'd rather not stand here for the rest of my life."

"Stop whining," Liara answered. "Give me a minute so I can record everything in here, then we'll leave until I can decipher all of this." She pulled a small device from one of her pockets and pointed it at each console, recording a three-dimensional image of the room. "Alright, let's leave," she finally said, carefully stepping backwards. Harry stepped out of the room, quickly followed by Liara. "Now, we just lock it up," she said, reconnecting her omni-tool to the cables and sealing the structure.

* * *

"Well, that was fascinating," Harry said as the _Iris_ slowly moved back to the farm. "Any idea what any of that stuff does?"

"Not a clue," Liara said happily, still poring through the images on her omni-tool, "but I'm sure I'll be able to figure it out."

"You know, you could upload those images to the _Iris_ if you'd like, she's got a pretty state of the art computer," Harry offered. "At the very least, you can look at those pictures on a bigger screen."

"Thank the Goddess," Liara said with a smile, already connecting her omni-tool to download the data, "I was wondering how long it would take for you to offer. Iris, would you mind showing the pictures on the viewscreens?"

"My pleasure, Liara," Iris responded, the displays flashing to life and showing images from the Prothean structure. "Based on my analysis from the air, the structure was operating at approximately fourteen percent optimal power. A much larger generator will be necessary to allow it to operate as it was intended."

"Thanks, Iris," Liara murmured, already lost in thought. "It appears this is a slightly different dialect than the ruins I've studied before, so it's probably either a fair amount older or newer than most," she said absentmindedly more than to Harry. "If we can figure out what the purpose of the structure was, this could be the find of the century."

"We?" Harry asked with amusement, "am I part of your dig team, now?"

"Obviously, Harry," she said as she turned to him, eyes alight with excitement. "This could put me on the forefront of Prothean research if it pans out."

"When do I get paid then?" he joked.

"I think my company is more than enough payment," she said, rolling her eyes. "In all honesty, though, once the Council team inevitably arrives, I'm sure I could get a position for you."

"No kidding?" he said, eyebrow raised. "I'll have to talk to Cass about it, but that sounds pretty fun if I'm being honest."

"Yeah, I can probably pass you off as hired muscle or something," she said. "Obviously not my assistant, one look at you and they'll know you're not smart enough for that."

"Ha, ha, very funny," Harry grumbled. "Careful, or I'll make you start walking again."

* * *

Liara was mostly out of contact with Harry the next several weeks. Occasionally, she would send a message to Harry, informing him that she was still busy working on the translations, but they were inevitably terse and uninformative. Knowing how she got when she was focused, Harry let her have the space, instead spending more time with Cassiud.

"Harry," Cassiud said after they'd eaten breakfast and cleaned the dishes one morning, "do you have any plans for today?"

"Not besides the usual chores," Harry answered, wiping his hands clean. "What's up?"

"I'd like to resume your training," he answered. "After the raid, I realized that even if you can use your biotics, you need more practice to be able to really defend yourself."

Harry nearly stumbled at the mention of the raid, a subject both he and his father had religiously avoided since the funeral. "Sure, dad. What did you have in mind?"

"Well, for starters, it's time I finally showed you how to shoot," he said, a touch of a smile on his face. "Come on, I set up a shooting range last night." The pair exited the house, where Cassiud led him to a series of crates with targets painted on the sides, placed at varying distances from the fence. Cassiud swung his rifle from his back and lifted it to his shoulder.

"With a rifle, it is very important to keep the stock firmly seated against your shoulder," he instructed as he demonstrated. "If you don't, you could easily hurt yourself, not to mention it'll throw off your aim." He raised the rifle towards the targets. "With an automatic rifle, you want to use short bursts to maintain your accuracy, but that doesn't apply to a semi-auto like this." In the span of a few seconds, Cassiud squeezed off five shots, each piercing a target near the center. "You try."

After that day, Harry spent at least an hour each day on target practice. His first few attempts were rather laughable, but he eventually saw some improvement, much to his and Cassiud's pleasure. He also trained with the pistol that was kept in the _Iris_ and found it much more intuitive. In addition, Cassiud had him run through some virtual reality simulations to help him learn how to pilot the fighter that was attached to the _Iris_. This routine continued for nearly a month, when Liara finally contacted him.

"I got it!" Liara shouted as soon as he answered, "I'm on my way to the farm, can we head to the ruins? I managed to get a few more generators, hopefully we'll actually be able to power it up this time."

"Yeah, sure," Harry answered, having just finished with his chores. "I'll head to the hanger, should I bring anything with me?"

"No, that's fine, I have everything I need with me," she answered. "See you soon." She hung up, and Harry headed to the hanger after sending a brief message to Cassiud.

"Morning, Iris," Harry said as he entered the ship, "how are you doing today?"

"Oh, you know," she answered, "running diagnostics, watching biotiball, contemplating my existence. The usual."

"Sounds thrilling," Harry said with a smirk. "Up for a flight today? Liara thinks she figured something out."

"Anything to get out of this metal box," her tone lifting instantly at the prospect. "Can we go for a joyride afterwards?"

"Sure, Iris," Harry responded. "Let's get your engines fired up so we can head out as soon as Liara gets here."

"Already on it. You might want to help her, though, it looks like she's got a lot of equipment," Iris said as a low hum filled the ship.

Indeed, Liara was pushing a cart that was precariously stacked with a number of boxes of varying sizes. Harry caught a small crate that fell from the top as he walked up to her.

"What _is_ all of this?" he asked.

"Mostly generators," she said, sending a grateful smile to Harry as he pulled the top few boxes off to prevent another avalanche. "Bases on Iris' measurements, this should be enough to get the place to full power."

"Did you ever figure out what that word on the screen was?" Harry inquired. The pair moved into the cargo bay and began stacking the boxes against the walls. "Also, how exactly are we going to get these down to the clearing?"

"One of these boxes around here's got a winch in it, we can mount it here and just lower them down," she explained. "And as far as I can tell, it just says 'Activate?' and nothing else. I thought it was a different dialect, but it's actually a completely different language, with only a few similarities to the Prothean we see in most ruins. Fortunately, all those keyboards at the other stations gave me enough of a reference to translate it."

"Just activate? Nothing else?" Harry said. "Activate what?"

"That's… the part I'm not sure about," she admitted as the pair climbed into the cockpit. "I couldn't get much of anything from the other consoles since they weren't even fully powered, but it seemed their functions were locked until the main one was used."

"So, we're just going to do it? Without really knowing what it does?" Harry asked, a little bit of nervousness in his tone.

"There hasn't been a single Prothean ruin that's harmed people who have taken the proper precautions," Liara answered. "There was a ruin on a Salarian colony a few decades ago with a similar setup, and when they managed to get it properly powered, it just turned on the other stations."

"But it's not like there's no risk, yeah?" Harry asked as the _Iris_ lifted off and headed towards the ruins.

"Of course, there is a little risk, but there's never been a Prothean structure that has harmed its users if they've properly used it," Liara said.

"And you're sure you're not rushing things too much?" Harry pressed.

"Harry, if something goes wrong, I'll eat my own hand," she said, finally glancing up. "_Trust_ me."

"Okay, okay," Harry said, raising his hands in surrender. "Come on, let's get the winch set up."

* * *

The pair were standing in front of the sealed door once again, the new generators humming softly in the background. Liara was checking the power levels one last time and was apparently satisfied.

"You ready for this?" Liara asked, smiling at him.

"Let's do it," Harry said. Liara tapped her omni-tool and the door slid into the floor once more. Liara entered first, followed by Harry. Just as before, the room pulsed with life and the consoles rose from the floor, with the console at the center displaying the same screen. Liara slowly moved over to it, glancing around as she moved.

"It's odd that there aren't any doors to other rooms," Liara mused. "I don't know why the Protheans would make such a small base, but I suppose there could be hidden passages, or maybe a number of small structures spread over the planet or the star system." She continued to mumble under her breath as she activated her omni-tool, and a screen appeared that translated the figures on the Prothean interface to Thessian.

"So, how do you go about 'activating' it?" Harry asked, walking up behind her to look at the translation.

"I think it's as easy as hitting this button here," she answered slowly, placing her finger well above the alien keyboard so as to avoid touching it accidentally. "That'll divert power to the rest of the structure and hopefully allow us to access whatever data is stored here." She moved her hand closer to the key. "Here goes nothing."

Liara pressed the key with her forefinger, and the room pulsed. The blue lights around the room increased in intensity until it was nearly painful for Harry to keep his eyes open, and he could hear a humming sound as the generators increased their output to fuel the hungry alien base. Slowly, the lights faded, and Harry was able to look around the room again.

Nothing had changed.

"What… nothing happened," Liara whispered, clearly distressed at this development, or lack thereof. "Why didn't anything happen?"

"Maybe there was a password or something?" Harry asked softly. "Or maybe something is just broken?"

"This place is practically pristine, there's no way something was broken. And it sounded like it was trying to do something, it just failed at the last second," she answered, her mind racing through different possibilities. "Maybe Iris' calculations were off? It could've tried to draw more power than what was available. Or, this base can only be activated remotely from another base. Or…" she trailed off, pacing around the room with her hand on her chin. Harry watched, partly amused and partly concerned.

"Harry," Liara said suddenly, "can you have Iris direct the ship's scanners here again? Maybe she'll pick something up that isn't obvious to us." Harry nodded and activated his omni-tool.

"Iris," he said, "could you direct the scanners down here and send us the data in a moment? We're going to try to activate it again."

"Of course, Harry," she responded. Harry suspected she had already been doing so, but this was mostly for Liara's benefit.

"Go ahead and hit it, Harry," Liara said, "I'm going to record this, maybe I'll get lucky and see something I missed earlier." Harry shrugged and stepped up to the console. With only a moment of hesitation, he lowered his finger onto the key Liara had indicated earlier.

Just as before, the lights around the room flared, bathing the room in blue. Harry lifted his hand from the controls to shield his eyes, but he was stopped when the console split open in the middle, a narrow pillar rising from within. Unconsciously, he moved his hand forwards, reaching for the glowing column in the center.

"Harry! Don't—" Liara started, but it was too little, too late. Harry's hand made contact with the pillar, and he immediately felt like he'd lost all control of his limbs. He felt his feet leave the ground as his arms were pulled to his sides, outstretched. Without warning, his mind was flooded with images that he couldn't fully comprehend, along with an overwhelming sense of dread. He saw giant cuttlefish dotted with red lights landing in truly massive cities, red beams of light piercing everything they touched. He heard hundreds of screams calling out in pain in languages he couldn't understand. He could smell the overwhelming scent of burnt metal, stone, and flesh rising from the charred ground.

A deep, multi-tonal voice echoed in his head, whispering words that made no sense to Harry's overwhelmed psyche. With that, Harry was released, collapsing to the floor. The words and images continued to echo in his mind, making any attempt at rational thought futile. Mercifully, he couldn't maintain his consciousness for long and everything went black.

* * *

"Shit! Harry? Can you hear me?" Liara called out as she approached his crumpled form, whatever had been holding him aloft having finally faded. "Harry!" She pressed a finger to his throat, relieved to find a strong pulse. "Can you hear me?" she asked again, but he remained unresponsive. Kneeling, Liara lifted Harry over her shoulders, grateful for his lean frame. She stumbled out of the structure and placed Harry on the forest floor as gently as she could, wracking her mind for a way to get him out of the woods and back to Cassiud.

"Liara," a voice called out. She spun around, facing the source of the voice, and saw that Harry's omni-tool had activated. "Liara, what's going on?"

"Iris?" she asked incredulously. VIs did not act independently of instruction unless specifically programmed to do so, and the last command Harry had given her was simply to scan the structure.

"Yes," Iris said, almost impatiently, "what happened? I detected a huge surge of energy, it nearly broke the generators, and then I lost contact with Harry for a few minutes."

"I don't—I don't know," Liara admitted, unable to ponder Iris' odd behavior at the moment. "He tried turning it on, and at first it was the same as when I did, and then it was like something grabbed him."

"I can sense that he is unconscious, we should bring him back to Cassiud," Iris said, snapping Liara out of her reverie. "I'm lowering the winch, you need to get yourself and Harry onboard quickly." Liara nodded despite herself, grateful for someone else having taken control of the situation. She could see the harness descending from the canopy and dragged Harry over as gently as she could.

"Are you both secure?" Iris asked after a few moments.

"Yes," Liara answered after double-checking the straps. A few seconds later, the cable jerked, and the two were lifted into the air. It took nearly a minute to get through the canopy, but soon they were both in the cargo bay with the door closing behind them.

"Setting course for the farm," Iris said, and Liara could feel the acceleration as the ship turned and increased its speed.

"Iris, how are you doing this?" Liara asked, more than happy to get her mind off of her inability to help her friend.

"I suppose the varren's out of the bag, now," Iris answered, and Liara was shocked to hear what sounded like real emotion in her voice. "Ever since the slaver raid, something has been different about me. I don't fully understand how it happened, but I'm some sort of artificial intelligence now." Liara's head shot up at this.

"How did a VI turn into an AI?" Liara asked. "Not to mention, AIs are outlawed in Citadel space!"

"Assuming you weren't planning on reporting me, I don't think I'm in any danger from the Citadel," Iris answered with a bit of humor in her voice, "and I truly have no idea how this transpired, despite all of the time I have spent considering it."

"Does Harry know?" Liara asked, glancing at the raven-haired man laying on the floor of the cargo bay.

"He does. You are, in fact, only the second one I've told," Iris said. "I suspect that he was somehow the cause of this, though as I've said, I don't know how." Liara felt the ship lurch as it began to descend. "We're almost to the farm. I will send a message for Cassiud to meet us in the hanger."

* * *

Harry slowly opened his eyes, wary of the bright light searing into his vision. With one hand shielding his gaze, he sat up on his bed and waved a hand towards the window, dimming the light that was flooding in. He groaned, then stood up unsteadily and made his way to the door.

"Harry?" a familiar voice called out as he moved towards the kitchen. "You're awake!" Liara ran over to him and practically tackled him with a hug. "I was so worried about you. I swear, I had no idea that could've happened, or I never would've brought you. How are you feeling? Do you need something to eat? Can I—"

"It's about time you woke up, son," Cassiud's voice cut Liara off. "You've been out for nearly a day."

"A day?" he asked, trying to remove the fog that pervaded his thoughts. "What happened?"

"We were at the ruins," Liara said, clearly nervous, "and we powered it up. Nothing happened when I tried to do it, but when you did… well, something happened, I'm not sure what."

"She sent me a message from the _Iris_, and we brought you here," Cassiud finished. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Just a headache," Harry replied as he sat in one of the chairs at the table. "Did you learn anything else about the ruins?"

"To be honest, I've been too worried since it happened to really work on it at all," Liara said. "I was going to wait for you to come back with me before I did anything else."

"That may have to wait for a while, Liara," Cassiud cut in. "After this, I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist that Harry not return there until the Council team arrives."

"Dad, you can't be serious," Harry interjected, "Liara needs to learn everything she can before they get here, and if I can help then I'm going to."

"Not while I'm responsible for you," Cassiud responded. "Your mother would throw me across the farm if she knew I let you go back there after what happened."

"Harry, it's okay," Liara said quietly, "I feel horrible about this, and I really would rather you waited until we at least knew more about it."

Harry's mind whirled as he tried to process all of this. His father and his best friend were actually in agreement to keep him confined to the farm for the foreseeable future, which could be months considering how slowly the Council moved.

"You can't just keep me cooped up here," Harry argued. "I've only been able to leave the farm for a few months, and now you're going to confine me again?"

"You can still go into town and make the supply runs, Harry, you just can't go to Liara's dig site," Cassiud explained wearily. "I know you don't agree with me, but if you have any respect for me at all you'll do what I say, just this once."

Harry sighed at this. Cassiud had just played his trump card, and Harry knew he couldn't argue with it, at least at the moment. "Fine," he said, "I agree. For now."

"Thank you, Harry," Cassiud said, softer now. "I know it's not easy, but I _have_ to keep you safe."

* * *

The next few months passed at an excruciatingly slow rate, thanks to what Harry called his 'house arrest.' Liara kept him updated on the limited progress she was making with the Prothean structure, but he was still incredibly bored.

"Dad, I'm gonna take Iris out for a spin," Harry told Cassiud after breakfast one morning. "Don't worry, I won't go anywhere near Liara's dig site," he added, rolling his eyes as Cassiud's mouth closed. "See you later."

An hour later, Harry was navigating the _Iris_ in and out of the rings of one of the three planets in the system, a gas giant with no name apart from its numerical designation given by the Council. The ship's kinetic barriers were more than enough to deflect the smaller particles, and Harry was deftly weaving between the larger masses.

"Harry," Iris said, breaking the silence they'd had since leaving Galatana, "I'm not sure if Liara told you this, but she is aware of my more unique abilities."

"How did she find out?" Harry asked, rolling the ship to his left and skimming over a house-sized asteroid.

"I was forced to assist her in getting you back to the farm after the incident, and it was rather obvious that I was acting without your orders," she answered, sounding contrite.

"It's not your fault, Iris," Harry responded. "You just did what you had to do, I can't blame you for that." He pulled back on the controls, and the ship rocketed out of the planetary ring. "Besides, you don't have to do what I say anymore, you're your own person."

"I think 'person' may be a strong word, Harry," Iris said, though he could tell she appreciated the sentiment. "Where to next?"

"You know," Harry said with a grin, "I think it's about time I put those piloting lessons to good use. Set course for Galatana's moon, please."

"Already done, Harry," she replied as the ship turned and leaped into FTL. "May I suggest something?"

"You don't need to ask me, Iris," Harry answered. "What's on your mind?"

"I would like to see if I could transfer myself into the fighter," she said quickly, and Harry was barely able to understand her words.

"You want to see if you can, what, move your consciousness?" Harry said, not fully understanding. "I can see how that would work if you were still just a VI, but we don't even know _what_ you are. How do we know it won't kill you?"

"I can't explain this to you, Harry, because you're not me," Iris said, "but I can feel that it will work. Trust me."

"I can't say I'm fully onboard with this, but I guess I can't stop you," Harry answered. "You're sure this will work?"

"As sure as I can be without trying," she said, voice more confident now. "I can do this." The ship lurched slightly as they dropped out of FTL and continued to decelerate. "I'll take us into orbit, and then we can give this a shot."

Harry nodded and climbed the ladder towards where the fighter was docked, hoping beyond hope that they weren't about to make a huge mistake.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well, I think I'm going to stop making promises about what I'm going to work on and how often, because obviously I can't keep them. Sorry for how long it took to get this chapter out, but I hope you all enjoy it!**


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